Hospital Admissions Associated With Head and Neck Injuries From Olympic-style Sports and Activities Between 2010 and 2022

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate which Olympic-style sports and activities are most likely to result in hospitalizations relating to head and neck injuries. This was a cross-sectional study using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database. Subjects with head and neck injuries from selected Olympic-style sports and activities between 2010 and 2022 were included. Independent variables were demographics and injury characteristics (injury location and sport). The primary outcome variable was hospitalization (yes/no). Survey-weighted descriptive, bivariate, and logistic regression statistics were computed to measure the association between demographic/injury variables and hospitalization. There were 175,995 subjects (national estimate, 5,922,584) meeting inclusion criteria. After adjusting for demographic and injury characteristics, head injuries (odds ratio [OR] = 2.17; 95% CI, 1.83–2.56; P<0.001) demonstrated higher odds of hospitalization compared with facial injuries. Injuries from cycling (OR = 2.52; 95% CI, 2.16–2.95; P<0.001), mountain biking (OR = 2.56; 95% CI, 1.80-3.65; P<0.001), and horseback riding (OR = 4.01; 95% CI, 2.76–5.83; P<0.001) demonstrated higher odds of hospitalization relative to baseball injuries. In conclusion, head and neck injuries associated with high velocity Olympic-style sports and activities such as cycling, mountain biking, and horseback riding had the highest odds of hospitalization.