Danger score versus ER volume
Danger score versus ER volume
According to CPSC NEISS 2005-2024, Other Ball Sports (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) ranks #137 of 838 by danger score (41/100) at ER-volume #69 of 838 (37,690/yr). They are not the same ranking.
- #137
- danger rank of 838
- #69
- ER-volume rank of 838
- 41/100
- danger score
- 37,690/yr
- estimated ER visits (avg)
Danger score combines injury volume, hospitalization, fatality, and five-year trend. ER volume is the average annual NEISS estimate alone. Rank 1 is highest on each list.
Where this category's danger score sits nationally
Danger score (41/100) across 838 scored CPSC product categories
41 Higher than most more dangerous than 79% of 838 product categories
scored CPSC product categories, bucketed by value
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more product categories. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source CPSC NEISS, PlainSafety danger-score model · 2024
Composite verdict
Composite Safety Score: 52/100
One verdict blending 4 independently-sourced dimensions from two separate CPSC systems, each benchmarked against all 838 scored product categories by percentile rather than raw value, so no single huge-volume category can dominate the scale.
| Dimension | Value | National percentile | Weight applied | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Injury severity (hospitalization + fatality blend) | 5 | 41st | 35% | CPSC NEISS 20-year severity index |
| Annual ER injury volume | 37,690 | 92nd | 30% | CPSC NEISS estimated annual ER-treated injuries |
| 5-year injury trend | +1% | 68th | 15% | CPSC NEISS 5-year % change in ER-treated injuries |
| Consumer incident reports | 0 | 0th | 20% | CPSC SaferProducts.gov public incident report count |
Methodology: each dimension is ranked against the full population's p10/p25/p50/p75/p90 breakpoints and interpolated to a 0-100 percentile; the composite is the weighted average of available percentiles. See methodology for the full benchmark table.
Where 753,812 estimated ER injuries land on the body
Body-part shares from the same CPSC NEISS injury_types extract for product code 3235. Segments sum to 753,812 - a body-map mix, not a danger score or ER-volume rank.
Two danger lenses
Same-group peer scores and this product's dial
The bars compare PlainSafety danger scores inside the Sports Protective Equipment & Gear group (same CPSC NEISS extract). The dial is this product's score alone on the Low/Moderate/High bands. Do not read a peer bar as an ER-visit count.
Sports Protective Equipment & Gear danger scores
How this 41/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume 37,690 ER visits/yr Very high volume
- Severity (hospitalization rate) 4.2% Below median admission rate
- Fatality rate 0.05% Above-typical fatality rate
- 5-year trend+1%
Band labels compare this category against the corpus of 838 scored CPSC product categories, see the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Across the 20-year NEISS window from 2005 to 2024, injury counts for other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) are roughly flat over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (59,765 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (20,199 estimated visits). The single most common ER diagnosis is strain, sprain to the ankle, accounting for approximately 60,210 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by fracture to the finger (50,829 cases). The 5-14 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 356,654 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 4.2% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.05%) result in fatality.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 0 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 5,547 | 2,518 | |
| 5-14 | 231,697 | 124,921 | |
| 15-24 | 83,914 | 42,953 | |
| 25-34 | 36,860 | 24,179 | |
| 35-44 | 26,086 | 16,506 | |
| 45-54 | 14,067 | 11,637 | |
| 55-64 | 18,292 | 21,901 | |
| 65-74 | 34,001 | 29,600 | |
| 75+ | 16,033 | 12,949 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Ankle | Strain, Sprain | |
| Finger | Fracture | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Finger | Strain, Sprain | |
| Knee | Strain, Sprain | |
| Wrist | Fracture | |
| Upper Trunk | Other | |
| Wrist | Strain, Sprain | |
| Head | Concussion | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Lower Arm | Fracture | |
| Lower Leg | Strain, Sprain | |
| Knee | Other | |
| Foot | Strain, Sprain | |
| Face | Contusions, Abr. |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
76 YOM WAS PLAYING PICKLEBALL ABOUT 30MIN AGO, FELL BACKWARDS HITTING HIS HEAD ON THE BENCH, C/O PAIN TO LEFT BACK, RIBS AND LEFT SHOULDER. DX: RIB FX
13 YOM ROLLED HIS ANKLE PLAYING DODGEBALL LAST NIGHT. DX: ANKLE PAIN
16YOM WAS PLAYING DODGE BALL AT SCHOOL. HE JUMPED TO AVOID THE BALL AND FELT HIS KNEE POP. DX: KNEE CONTUSION/ KNEE DISLOCATION
54YOF WAS PLAYING PICKLEBALL WHEN SHE FELL ONTO HER FOREHEAD DX:LAC TO FOREHEAD
76YOF WAS PLAYING BOCCI BALL WHEN SHE WENT TO THROW THE BALL AND LOST HER BALANCE FALLING ONTO THE COURT TRIED TO BRACE HER FALL WITH HER RIGHT ARM DX: FRACTURED RIGHT HUMERUS
15 YOM TWISTED ANKLE PLAYING DODGEBALL AT SCHOOL. DX FIBULA FX
59YOF WAS PLAYING PICKLEBALL WHEN SHE DEVELOPED PAIN IN CHEST DX:CHEST PAIN
66 YOF. WRIST INJURY AFTER PT FELL WHILE PLAYING PICKLEBALL ONTO OUTSTRETCHED LT HAND. DX: CLOSED COLLE' FX OF LT RADIUS
71YOM PRESENTS WITH HEAD AND NECK PAIN AFTER WHILE PLAYING PICKLEBALL HE LOST HIS BALANCE AND FELL BACKWARD HITTING HEAD ON GROUND DX: FALL FROM GROUND LEVEL
62YOF PATIENT STATES SHE WAS PLAYING PICKLE BALL WHEN SHE RAN INTO ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL FALLING TO HER BACK AND HITTING HER HEAD. DX: BACK PAIN, HEAD INJURY
70YOF WITH FALL IN PICKLEBALL DX: CHI AND CONTUSION TO HEAD
59YOM, PLAYING PICKLEBALL AND ACCIDENTALLY GOT HIT TO THE EYE WITH THE BALL, DX: ABRASION OF RIGHT CORNEA; SUBCONJUNCTIVAL HEMORRHAGE
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) on the CPSC website.
Compare beyond Sports Protective Equipment & Gear
Nationwide peers by danger score, ER volume & hospitalization
Three PlainSafety-derived comparison paths for Other Ball Sports (activity, Apparel Or Equipment): cross-group products nearest on danger score (41/100), estimated annual ER visits (37,690/yr), and hospitalization share (4.2%). Same-group neighbours stay in Related Products above.
Similar danger score
Nearest cross-group products by PlainSafety danger score (100-point scale).
Similar ER visit volume
Nearest cross-group products by NEISS estimated annual ER visits.
Similar hospitalization rate
Nearest cross-group products by % of NEISS ER visits resulting in hospital admission.
Related Products in Sports Protective Equipment & Gear
Read with this product
About this data
CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports form the basis of this page. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments.
According to PlainSafety's CPSC NEISS corpus ranking, Other Ball Sports (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) ranks #137 of 838 scored CPSC product categories by PlainSafety danger score and #69 of 838 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) rank on danger score versus ER volume?
Among 838 scored CPSC product categories, other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) ranks #137 by PlainSafety danger score (41/100) and #69 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume (37,690/yr). The two rankings come from the same NEISS extract and are not the same order.
What are the most common injuries from other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment)?
The most common injury is strain, sprain to the ankle, accounting for approximately 60,210 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) increasing or decreasing?
Stable over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment) injuries?
The 5-14 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 356,654 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment)?
Of all ER visits involving other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment), approximately 4.2% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (95.8%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with other ball sports (activity, apparel or equipment)?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
PlainSafety is rendered directly from U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recall and incident records, no number is typed in by an editor. Product recall timelines and hazard labels are drawn from CPSC recall records for this product. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.