Staying Grounded About Trampoline Safety
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is re-affirming its recommendations against recreational trampolining, citing updated figures on the number and kinds of injuries children sustain as a result of using a trampoline.
By the numbers
Following the release of the previous AAP policy (issued in 1999 and updated in 2006), trampoline injuries have steadily decreased each year. However, the potential for injury among users is still relatively high. In 2009, nearly 29,000 injuries were reported, with about 3,100 resulting in hospitalization or death. Furthermore, netting and other safety measures did nothing to reduce trampoline injury rates. Many of these injuries occurred with adult supervision.
The most potentially dangerous situations are when multiple people are bouncing at the same time, accounting for nearly 75 percent of all trampoline injuries. In these instances, the youngest children are most at risk. While most trampoline-related injuries are sprains, strains, contusions and other soft-tissue injuries, children less than 5 years old are most susceptible to bone-related injuries. For this age group, 48 percent of injuries were fractures or dislocations. Ten to 17 percent of all trampoline-related injuries were head and neck injuries and most were a result of somersaulting and flipping
Trampoline safety tips
The AAP recommends you follow these guidelines when it comes to trampolines:
- Do not use trampolines for recreational use.
- Children should not attempt to do somersaults or flips on a trampoline, as cervical spine injuries are most common following failed attempts at flipping. The consequences can be devastating and permanent.
- If you have a trampoline in your home, check to make sure your insurance covers trampoline-related injury claims.
- If you go to trampoline parks, understand that their rules and regulations may not be consistent with AAP guidelines.
- Trampolines used for sports training or gymnastics programs should always have appropriate supervision, coaching and safety measures in place.
Reviewed by: Patrick S. Pasquariello Jr., MD
Date: October 2012
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