Head and Neck Injury Patterns among American Football Players

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Head and Neck Injury Patterns among American Football Players Via otol rhinol Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol. 2021 Jun 18:34894211026478. doi: 10.1177/00034894211026478. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT IMPORTANCE: American football is a popular high-impact sport, leading to 2.7 million injuries in the United States annually. Recent evidence in football-related neurological damage has spurred national interest in player-safety. Football players injure their head and neck in up to 26% of total injuries. Variation in injury patterns between age groups and corr elated hospitalizations for football-related head and neck injury has yet to be characterized. OBJECTIVE: Our aim is to evaluate injury patterns among American-football related head and neck trauma. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of patients with football-related head and neck injury in the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). RESULTS: Nearly 100 000 ED visits for football-related head and neck injuries occur annually. Males comprised 95% of patients, with a median age of 13. The head comprised 70% of injuries followed by the face (13%). The most common diagnoses were concussions (39%), internal organ injury (26%), and lacerations (11%). Pediatric patients were more likely to sustain concussions while adults experienced more lacerations (P < .05%). Fractures and nerve damage were rare injuries but caused a disproportionate share of hospitalizations. CONCLUSION: Pediatric males are most likely to present for emergency care f rom football-related injury to the head and neck. Evaluating physicians can anticipate concussions, internal organ injury, and lacerations among presenting patients. Concussions, facial fractures, and nerve damage are injuries most likely to lead to hospitalization. PMID:34142563 | DOI:10.1177/00034894211026478 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.