Concussion Rates Across Sports
Approximately 3.8 million sport-related concussions occur every year in the United States. The CDC estimated that 5-10% of athletes will get a concussion in any given sports season. The majority of these concussions tend to take place during competition rather than practice. The risk of concussion tends to vary between genders and depends on the sport being played.
Concussions are caused by TBI’s (traumatic brain injuries), which occur when the brain is jostled inside the skull, causing trauma to the brain. Based on the definition it is unsurprising that there is a much higher risk of injury in contact sports than in non-contact sports. In fact, contact sports such as football, basketball, and soccer account for 45% of all emergency department visits for sports-related concussions among children 17 and under. According to a recent update from the CDC, the top 10 sports with the highest youth rates of concussion are:
