As the Popularity of Pickleball Soars, So Do Fractures Among Older Players
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With so many older people regularly playing, pickleball injuries have been on the rise among this population.
“Ninety-two percent of these fractures were attributed to falls during pickleball gameplay,” says Yasmine Ghattas, a study author and fourth year medical student at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine in Orlando. “I think for those who perceive pickleball to be completely benign, this study certainly shows that the game has its fair share of risk of injury, including fractures.”
Women More Prone to Pickleball Injury, but Men Are More Often Hospitalized
Using data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), Ghattas and her collaborators identified 377 individuals with pickleball-related injuries between 2002 and 2020.
Based on analysis of the data sample, the researchers calculated a 90-fold rise in pickleball related fractures over the study period, with a noticeable surge from 2020 onward, when fractures doubled.
In translating the numbers to reflect the entire U.S. population, Ghattas and her team calculated that nationwide there were about 24,000 fractures over the course of the study and 5,400 during the last year.
About two-thirds of all fractures were in the arms, shoulders, or hands, and most fractures were in women ages 65 and up, potentially reflecting diminishing bone health after menopause.
Despite the fact that women sustained the majority of fractures, men were 2.3 times more likely to be hospitalized following a pickleball fracture. The study authors speculated that this trend may have been due, in part, to the severity of fractures among men. Their injuries often included fractures of the hip and femur (thigh bone).
Ghattas recognized that the results were limited by the small sample size. “The NEISS database was only representative of about 1.7 percent of national pickleball-related fractures,” she says.
Why Are Older Pickleball Players Getting More Fractures?
While the study authors suggest that the rise in injuries is related to the popularity of the sport, the “data just isn’t there to tell us if the sport’s popularity is the sole reason behind the increase,” according to Ghattas.
Michael Fredricson, MD, director of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Sports Medicine at Stanford University in California and co-director of the Stanford Longevity Center, says the soaring numbers are not unexpected, as many older people engaged in the sport are prone to fracture.
“In this older population, your bones are not as strong as when you were younger — they are starting to thin,” says Dr. Fredricson. “It’s suspected that a lot of these fractures were related to underlying osteoporosis,” a disease that weakens bones.
At the same time, however, he stresses that exercise like this can be beneficial for bone density, and the movements involved may improve balance, lowering the risk of falls.
Overall, Fredricson believes the benefits of pickleball outweigh the risks if older adults proceed with some caution. Because the game is relatively easy to learn, some older adults may start playing even if they haven’t been very physically active recently.
“I wouldn’t just jump onto the pickleball court if you haven’t been exercising at all.” he says. Fredricson advises getting some level of physical conditioning before joining in, like riding a stationary bike or some type of cross training activity to build strength, balance, and aerobic capacity.
Training can also help prevent other pickleball-related injuries, such as strains, sprains, bruises, scrapes, and lower back pain.
Ghattas emphasized that the study is not meant to discourage anyone from playing pickleball, but she advises older adults to consult with their healthcare provider to make educated decisions regarding their participation.
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