Epidemiology of sports-related injuries in children and youth presenting to Canadian emergency departments from 2007/08 to 2009/10

Although injuries related to sports and recreation represent a significant burden to children and youth, there is a paucity of information about descriptive epidemiology of sports related injury since 2005. The objective of this study was to provide the descriptive epidemiology of sports-related injuries treated in emergency departments for children and youth aged 5 - 19. Children and youth (5 - 19 years) in CHIRPP (2007 -2010) were included. Descriptive statistics, including frequency by sport, age and sex, and the percent of concussions within each sport were calculated. Out of a total of 56, 691 reported sports-related injuries, soccer accounted for 11,941 injuries. The 10 - 14 age group reported the greatest number of injuries. Males reported a greater number of minor injuries. The largest percentage of concussions (16.7%) was reported in ringette. Injury prevention programs in Canada should focus on improving evidence-based programs to reduce the burden of injuries in all sports.