Child, teen boxing injuries have soared

COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 5 (UPI) -- From 1990 to 2008, the number of boxing injuries increased 211 percent, from 5,361 injuries to 17,000 injuries yearly, U.S. researchers said.

Researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, say during the 19-year study period an average of 8,700 boxing injuries were treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments annually --about 2,500 of those injuries were to children and teens ages 6-17.

Dr. Gary Smith, the senior author, said the study's most concerning discovery was the similar proportion of concussions/closed head injuries among the different age groups -- 9 percent among those ages 12-17, 8 percent those ages 18-24 and 9 percent among those ages 25-34.

"We expected a smaller proportion of concussions/closed head injuries among younger boxers, since they generate a lower punch force," Smith says in a statement.

"The fact that young boxers are experiencing a similar proportion of concussions and closed head injuries as older boxers is extremely concerning given the potential risk of developing chronic traumatic encephalopathy with repetitive brain trauma. These repetitive blows to the head may be placing boxers under 18 years of age at risk for neurological impairment and psychological problems due to chronic traumatic encephalopathy."

The findings are published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.