Softball (activity, Apparel Or Equipment)
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Swimming, Water & Beach Equipment · CPSC Code 5034
Down 39% over 5 years
The verdict
Softball (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) carry a danger score of 39/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 86,509 ER-treated injuries a year that are declining by about 39% over the last five years.
- 39/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 86,509
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 1.9%
- end in hospital admission
- 15-24
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 5034 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 39/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for softball (activity, apparel or equipment) - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume86,509 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)1.9%
- Fatality rate0.03%
- 5-year trend-39%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Softball (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) (CPSC product code 5034, in the Swimming, Water & Beach Equipment category) generate an estimated 86,509 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 1.7M ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 39/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are declining by about 39% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2009 (121,175 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (28,282 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for softball (activity, apparel or equipment) is strain, sprain to the ankle, accounting for approximately 148,606 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by internal injury to the head (91,536 cases). The 15-24 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 546,890 cases over the NEISS window, and females appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 1.9% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.03%) 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 softball (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 CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 2,976 | 2,707 | |
| 5-14 | 33,978 | 474,390 | |
| 15-24 | 119,916 | 426,865 | |
| 25-34 | 204,875 | 113,156 | |
| 35-44 | 138,667 | 68,053 | |
| 45-54 | 61,325 | 25,684 | |
| 55-64 | 25,124 | 5,918 | |
| 65-74 | 16,603 | 2,197 | |
| 75+ | 6,041 | 1,332 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Ankle | Strain, Sprain | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Knee | Strain, Sprain | |
| Face | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Face | Fracture | |
| Finger | Fracture | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Head | Concussion | |
| Shoulder | Strain, Sprain | |
| Hand | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Finger | Strain, Sprain | |
| Lower Leg | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Knee | Other | |
| Mouth | Laceration | |
| Wrist | Strain, Sprain |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
15 YOF PLAYING SOFTBALL AND HIT BY A PITCHED BALL. DX HIP CONTUSION
13YOF PRESENTS WITH A LACERATION TO HER LEFT EYEBROW AFTER BEING HIT WITH A SOFTBALL DURING SOFTBALL PRACTICE DX: LACERATION OF LEFT EYEBROW
19YOM WAS ACCIDENTALLY HIT IN THE FACE BY A SOFTBALL. DX: FACIAL FX.
16 YOF HIT IN HEAD PLAYING SOFTBALL DX; CONCUSSION W/O LOC
17YOF PRESENTS TO THE ED AFTER THE PATIENT HURT HER LEFT PINKY FINGER WHILE PLAYING SOFTBALL COMPLAINING OF PAIN. DX: FINGER INJURY, FINGER FRACTURE, LEFT
14YOF WAS PLAYING SOFTBALL WHEN HER CLEAT GOT STUCK AS SHE WAS RUNNING THE BASES AND RIGHT KNEE POPPED OUT OF PLACE DX: DISLOCATION KNEE
14YOF WAS PLAYING SOFTBALL TWISTED UPPER BACK AND DX: ACUTE BACK PAIN
14YOF WAS AT SOFTBALL PRACTICE THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS DOING ALOT OF RUNNING, DEVELOPED CRAMPING IN BOTH CALVES DX: MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN CALVES
58YOF WAS PLAYING SOFTBALL AND WAS HIT IN THE CHEST DX: CONTUSION RIBS
14YOF WAS PLAYING SOFTBALL AND FELL ONTO RIGHT SHOULDER DX: FRACTURED RIGHT HUMERUS
43YOF PATIENT WAS PLAYING SOFTBALL WHEN SHE FELL ONTO HER KNEES WITH HER ARM STRETCHED OUT. DX: CHEST WALL PAIN
15YOF C/O CONCUSSION AND STRAINED NECK S/P PT STATES SHE WAS CATCHING SOFTBALLS FROM A PITCHING MACHINE WHEN 2 SOFTBALLS GOING 60-70PMH HIT HER ON HER FOREHEAD CAUSING HER TO FALL TO THE GROUND. DX: CONCUSSION AND NECK STRAIN
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to softball (activity, apparel or equipment) on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are softball (activity, apparel or equipment)?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, softball (activity, apparel or equipment) have a danger score of 39/100 (low risk). An estimated 86,509 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from softball (activity, apparel or equipment)?
The most common injury is strain, sprain to the ankle, accounting for approximately 148,606 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from softball (activity, apparel or equipment) increasing or decreasing?
Down 39% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for softball (activity, apparel or equipment) injuries?
The 15-24 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 546,890 cases recorded over 20 years. Females are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by softball (activity, apparel or equipment)?
Of all ER visits involving softball (activity, apparel or equipment), approximately 1.9% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (98.1%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with softball (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.
Related Products in Swimming, Water & Beach Equipment
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 39/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 15-24 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
