A recent analysis found pickleball-related injuries have increased more than 200% in 20 years, NBC News reported Feb. 12.
Pickleball is played with a perforated plastic ball and wooden paddles on a badminton-size court. The number of players rose from 4.8 million in 2021 to 8.9 million in 2023, according to USA Pickleball.
The injury analysis used the Consumer Product Safety Commission's National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, which contains a representative sample of injuries from 100 emergency departments. The analysis found descriptions of 377 pickleball-related fractures between 2002 and 2022, which was extrapolated to a total of approximately 5,400 injuries annually, according to the report.
Here are four analysis findings:
- The most common injury was bone fractures, 92% of which occurred during falls.
- Women, especially over the age of 65, were more likely than men to experience a fracture. Fractures in the upper body, such as forearms and hands, were most common.
- Men were 2.3 times more likely to be admitted to the hospital after breaking a bone, and fractures tended to be in the lower body, such as hip and femur.
- Other common injuries included sprained ankles, debilitating knee injuries such as damage to the ACL, rotator cuff injuries, worsening arthritis, Achilles tendon tears and strains, and foot fractures.