39
CPSC NEISS Data 2005–2024

Sports And Recreational Activity, N.e.c.

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.

Sports & Recreation Equipment · CPSC Code 1200

Down 34% over 5 years

The verdict

Sports And Recreational Activity, N.e.c. carry a danger score of 39/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 69,513 ER-treated injuries a year that are declining by about 34% over the last five years.

39/100
danger score (low risk)
69,513
ER visits per year (avg)
2.7%
end in hospital admission
5-14
most-injured age group

Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1200 - last data year 2024.

PlainSafety danger score

0/100100/10039/100
PlainSafety danger score

Source: CPSC NEISS danger-score model As of 2024

How this 39/100 score is built

The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. - no opinion, no editorializing:

  • Injury volume69,513 ER visits/yr
  • Severity (hospitalization rate)2.7%
  • Fatality rate0.02%
  • 5-year trend-34%

See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.

What the CPSC Data Shows

Sports And Recreational Activity, N.e.c. (CPSC product code 1200, in the Sports & Recreation Equipment category) generate an estimated 69,513 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 1.4M 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 34% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2011 (88,261 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (28,028 estimated visits).

The single most common ER diagnosis for sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. is strain, sprain to the ankle, accounting for approximately 186,597 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by internal injury to the head (73,230 cases). The 5-14 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 833,450 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 2.7% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.02%) result in fatality.

Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 5 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. 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.

69,513
Injuries / Year
2.7%
Hospitalization Rate
0.02%
Fatality Rate

Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)

20K40K60K80K100K 20052008201120142017202020232024 67K
Estimated annual emergency-room visits for Sports And Recreational Activity, N.e.c., CPSC NEISS

Source: CPSC NEISS national injury estimates As of 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 10,147 7,069 17,216
5-14 442,464 390,958 833,450
15-24 230,787 165,008 395,795
25-34 55,071 19,177 74,303
35-44 24,737 11,229 35,966
45-54 11,670 6,059 17,729
55-64 5,713 3,347 9,060
65-74 2,334 1,564 3,898
75+ 1,334 1,499 2,833

Most Common Injuries

Body Part Diagnosis Est. Injuries
Ankle Strain, Sprain 186,597
Head Internal Injury 73,230
Knee Strain, Sprain 66,135
Wrist Strain, Sprain 53,573
Knee Other 39,865
Head Concussion 39,718
Lower Arm Fracture 38,606
All Parts Body Other 38,343
Upper Trunk Other 37,320
Face Laceration 36,952
Finger Fracture 34,994
Wrist Fracture 34,429
Foot Strain, Sprain 31,433
Finger Strain, Sprain 28,770
Knee Contusions, Abr. 26,773

Severity Breakdown

Treated/examined And Released 96.3% (1.3M)
Treated And Admitted/hospitalized 1.9% (26,037)
Left Without Being Seen 0.8% (11,181)
Treated And Transferred 0.7% (10,231)
Held For Observation 0.2% (3,124)
Fatality Incl. Doa, Died In Er 0.0% (248)
Unknown, Not Stated 0.0% (16)

ER Visit Narratives

Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.

Age 13 · Male · Ankle · Strain, Sprain · 2024

13YOM PRESENTS TO ED COMPLAINING OF LEFT ANKLE AFTER TWISTING IN GYM CLASS EARLIER TODAY. PAIN IS SHARP AND LCOATED ON LATERAL MALLEOLUS. DENIES LOSS OF STRENGTH. DX: SPRAIN OF LEFT ANKLE, UNSPECIFIED LIGAMENT

Age 16 · Male · Neck · Strain, Sprain · 2024

16YOM PATIENT WAS BUCKED OFF A BULL WHILE BULL RIDING, NECK PAIN, LOWER BACK PAIN DX: BLUNT TRAUMA, ACUTE LOW BACK PAIN WITHOUT SCIATICA, RIGHT ELBOW PAIN, WHIPLASH INJURY OF NECK

Age 17 · Male · Upper Trunk · Internal Injury · 2024

17YOM PATIENT WAS STEPPED ON BY A BULL WHILE HE WAS RIDING A BULL RIDING AT A BULL RIDING CAMP DX: STRUCK BY BULL, TRAUMATIC PNEUMOTHORAX, CLOSED FRACTURE OF TRANSVERSE PROCESS OF CERVICIAL VERTEBRA

Age 14 · Female · Wrist · Fracture · 2024

14YOF WAS CLIMBING ON A WOODEN PEG BOARD ON THE WALL OF THE GYM AND FELL OFF INJURING HER LEFT WRIST DX: LEFT WRIST FRACTURE

Age 38 · Male · Ear · Other · 2024

38YOM C/O HEARING LOSS AND LIGHTHEADEDNESS S/P PT STATES HE WAS SPARRING WITH A FRIEND ON FRIDAY WHEN HE WAS KICKED IN THE LEFT EAR. HIS SPARRING EQUIPMENT PROTECTED HIS HEAD BUT ALSO HAS A PIECE THAT EXTENDS INTO THE EAR. WHEN HE WAS STRUCK HAPPENS HE FELT SOMETHING SHIFTED IN HIS EAR. HE FELT LIGHTHEADED BECAUSE OF THE BUILD UP IN HIS EAR. DX: BILATERAL IMPACTED CERUMEN

Age 13 · Female · Knee · Contusions, Abr. · 2024

13YOF,PE TODAY AT SCHOOL WHEN TEACHER MADE HER WALK AN KNEE UNSTEADY AN FELL ONTO IT,DX:KNEE CONT

Age 10 · Male · Knee · Other · 2024

10YOM PATIENT WAS RUNNING AT PRACTICE TODAY WHEN HE WENT OVER SOME DIRT AND HIS FOOT SLIPPED CAUSING HIM TO HYPEREXTEND HIS KNEE. DX: KNEE INJURY

Age 17 · Male · Upper Leg · Strain, Sprain · 2024

17YOM WAS IN A MARCHING BAND AT SCHOOL PERFORMING WHEN HE FELT A POP IN HIS LEFT HAMSTRING DX STRAINED HAMSTRING

Age 9 · Male · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

9YOM WITH SYNCOPE AND COLLAPSE IN GYM CLASS AND HIT HEAD AND HAS CONTUSION TO FOREHEAD DX: SYNCOPE AND COLLAPSE

Age 6 · Male · Face · Laceration · 2024

6YOM FELL CLIMBING ON A ROCK WALL AT A PARK. DX: LAC FOREHEAD

Age 11 · Male · Knee · Other · 2024

11YOM, WAS DOING JUMP TEST IN GYM CLASS TODAY WHEN ACCIDENTALLY TWISTED ME, DX: ACUTE PAIN OF RIGHT KNEE

Age 15 · Male · Ankle · Strain, Sprain · 2024

15YOM, SUSTEAINED AN INVERSION INJURY TO ANKLE DURING GYM CLASS, DX: SPRAIN OF LEFT ANKLE

Consumer Incident Reports

Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.

9/22/2025 · Death · NinjaSafe LLC · Florida

We are heartbroken to share that an incident occurred involving our slackline-based obstacle course. Preliminary reports indicate that a supporting treereported to be in poor healthfailed, resulting in the death of a child and injuries to two others. Our user instructions caution against using the product with unhealthy or compromised trees. We are investigating internally to understand exactly what happened. We extend our deepest sympathies to those affected.

8/4/2017 · Injury, Emergency Department Treatment Received · Chad Murray (Human Slingshot) · Texas

My 11 year old daughter (will be 12 Aug 26th) was playing with "The Human Slingshot" by VAT19 with two 12-year olds and one 13-year old of similar build. The product instructions state 4 players only. My daughter collided with another player and sustained a fractured and dislocated clavicle which the emergency room doctor stated would more than likely require surgery due to the severity of her injury. This product has no age limits on the instructions and is a very dangerous product for younger less coordinated children as the product obviously requires controlled coordination while being sling-shotted back and forth among three other players. In essence, this product is an accident waiting to happen. We did not own this product as we were visiting a friend's house when my daughter participated in this game.

2/2/2022 · Injury, Hospital Admission · BRAVO SPORTS · Florida

I purchased skate protective gear from WalMart. Wrist splints, elbow pads, and knee pads. I fell backward. Elbow pads did not protect my arm. I sustained a compound fracture of my left distal humerus, elbow, that had to be surgically repair with plates and screws. Now I do not have full fiction of my arm.

12/19/2018 · Injury, Hospital Admission · Amazon.com LLC · Unspecified

I feel it’s important to notify the Uboway company of what recently happened with our son while using the ninja course kit. My hope is that us contacting you will possibly save any other kids from being injured by this faulty prod uct. We recently ordered the Uboway ninja obstacle course kit through Amazon to put up as part of our kids ninja warrior course in the basement. Our 3 kids have played on the course, friends have played on the course, neighbor kids have played on the course. Two Wednesday nights ago, our son suffered a terrible fall, headfirst, that resulted in a trip to the ER where he had to undergo a CT scan and was diagnosed with a concussion. It. Was. Scary. The trapeze bar that came already assembled by the company, BROKE. The details of the kit specifically state that is will hold up to 220 pounds. Our son weighs 88 pounds and was using the equipment properly. It never should have broken. Hearing your child so disoriented, scared, saying he can’t move, blurred vision, dizzy, ears ringing, etc was scary. Feeling the huge bump on his head and wondering if he cracked his skull was scary. I can’t help but be upset that this happened. I tried to contact the company via the amazon link and there’s no “tab” for me to click on where I can contact Uboway. My son now suffers from daily headaches and we have a $200 hospital bill. We live on a purposeful budget and an extra $200 is not in our budget. I am writing In hopes of saving other children from being seriously injured. Uboway needs do further testing on the wooden trapeze bars. Make them bigger or thicker or adjust the weight capacity because it definitly does not hold 220 lbs. Thank you for your time, [REDACTED] Sent from my iPhone

12/1/2023 · Injury, Emergency Department Treatment Received · XANDER BICYCLE CORP DBA RETROSPEC · Ohio

Spoke to- [REDACTED] He was completely unsympathetic to the fact that my daughter was almost scalped by your Velcro on the pull behind. THIS IS ALL GOING ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND HE WAS MADE AWARE. I also let him know that the phone call is being recorded. My daughter flipped the Velcro overhead to get out, and in an instant the Velcro stuck to her hair. We could not get it out after two hours in the bathtub being soaked with oil in every single conditioner I can find. He still said “im not sure what you’d like me to do. Like what’s your issue?” I end up having to cut my daughter’s hair off! Another baby can be injured by this product. This is not normal Velcro!!!!!! Many pictures were taken and I will include.

Product Recalls

Search for active and past recalls related to sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. on the CPSC website.

Frequently Asked Questions

How dangerous are sports and recreational activity, n.e.c.?

Based on 20 years of CPSC data, sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. have a danger score of 39/100 (low risk). An estimated 69,513 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.

What are the most common injuries from sports and recreational activity, n.e.c.?

The most common injury is strain, sprain to the ankle, accounting for approximately 186,597 injuries over 20 years.

Are injuries from sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. increasing or decreasing?

Down 34% over 5 years.

Who is most at risk for sports and recreational activity, n.e.c. injuries?

The 5-14 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 833,450 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.

What happens when someone is injured by sports and recreational activity, n.e.c.?

Of all ER visits involving sports and recreational activity, n.e.c., approximately 2.7% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (97.3%) are treated and released from the emergency department.

How can I report a safety problem with sports and recreational activity, n.e.c.?

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.

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 5-14 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.