Eyes on Summer Sports

2016 • Staff Education

With summer in full swing, we’re seeing an increase in sports-related eye injuries to children. More than 30,000 kids in the U.S. sustain serious sports-related eye injuries every year. In fact, more than 1 in 3 sports eye injuries currently involve children.

Tip: In Canada, eye injuries were cut by 90% after full-face protectors and headgear were mandated for ice hockey players.

33% More than 1 in 3 sports eye injuries currently involve children.

Here’s a look at some of the sad stats on which sports hold the most risk to your young patients…and what their parents should know.

FASTER THAN… Did you know that a hockey puck travels at over 90 mph or that badminton is the fastest racquet sport in the world, with shuttles known to travel more than 200 mph. (that’s faster than the famed Tokyo Bullet Train!)

KABOOM… Keep your kids away from fireworks, and especially bottle rockets. According the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than 1,300 eye injuries from fireworks were seen in emergency rooms in 2014. That’s double the number from two years earlier. More than a third of those 2014 injuries were sustained by children under age 15.

BASEBALL… Among American children between the ages of 5 to 14, more eye injuries occur while playing baseball than any other sport.

THE HOOP… More than 30% of eye injuries to Americans between the ages of 15 and 24 are the result of basketball. The same sport causes more than 2,500 eye injuries a year to children under the age of 14. Most of those injuries could have been avoided with appropriate protective eyewear.

TOYS… This is the time of year to remind adults in your practice to look for the ASTM label on prospective purchases for kids, meaning that the items meet the safety standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials.

90%… Nine out of 10 eye injuries could have been prevented if the child had been wearing some form of protective eyewear.

13 MINUTES… A sports eye injury is treated every 13 min. in an emergency room somewhere in the U.S.

PROTECTION SAVES… In Canada, eye injuries were cut by 90% after full-face protectors and headgear were required for hockey players.

COST… According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the annual cost associated with eye injuries in the U.S. is more than $175 million.

What do you tell your patients—both parents and children—to make sure young eyes are protected? Join in the conversation on Facebook here about how to cut down on summer sports eye injuries.