New CDC Study Quantifies Outdoor Recreational Injury Estimates
In a study from the CDC released in the journal Wilderness and Environmental Medicine presented national outdoor recreational injury estimates and is believed to be the first type study of its kind. Between 2004 and 2005 there were approximately 213,000 people treated each year in emergency departments for outdoor recreational injuries. Of those injured, about 109,000 (51.5 percent) were young people between the ages of 10 and 24. For both men and women of all ages an overall, 6.5 percent of outdoor injuries treated were diagnosed as traumatic brain injury (TBI). “Participation in outdoor recreation is increasingly popular in the United States,” said Arlene Greenspan, Dr. PH and co-author of the study. “The good news is that there are ways to help stay safe while having healthy fun outdoors. For example, by wearing the appropriate helmet for snowboarding, snowmobiling, sledding and rock climbing, you can reduce your risk of having a head injury, which could become a traumatic brain injury. Helmets are one piece of equipment that can have a critical, positive impact.” She concluded.
