Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2022 May 1;16(3):312-313.
doi: 10.1097/ICB.0000000000000965. Epub 2020 Jan 16.

RETINAL TEARS DUE TO PICKLEBALL INJURY

Catherine F Atkinson  1 , Mark E Patron, Brian C Joondeph
Affiliations
Case Reports

RETINAL TEARS DUE TO PICKLEBALL INJURY

Catherine F Atkinson et al. Retin Cases Brief Rep. .

Abstract

Purpose: This is the first case series of two instances of retinal tears due to an injury sustained while playing pickleball.

Methods: Case series.

Results: A 66-year old white man presented with a symptomatic retinal tear, localized retinal detachment, and mild vitreous hemorrhage nine days after he was hit in his left eye while playing pickleball. The patient was not wearing eye protection while playing. The patient was treated with cryotherapy, and after three weeks, the vitreous hemorrhage and retinal detachment resolved. In addition, a 60-year-old woman presented with a posterior vitreous detachment and a symptomatic retinal tear 1 month after blunt trauma to her left eye from a pickleball injury. She underwent successful laser retinopexy treatment.

Conclusion: Proper eye protection should be strongly considered while playing pickleball, especially in the elderly population or in individuals who are at higher risk for retinal detachment.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Ryu J, Yang H, Kim AC, et al. Understanding pickleball as a new leisure pursuit in older adults. Innov Aging 2017;1:1165.
    1. Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) 2016 Pickleball Participant Report (Rep.). Silver Spring, MD. SFIA; 2016.
    1. Steel D. Retinal detachment. BMJ Clin Evid 2014;2014:0710.
    1. Napier SM, Baker RS, Sanford DG, Easterbrook M. Eye injuries in athletics and recreation. Surv Ophthalmol 1996;41:229–244.
    1. USAPA & IFP Official Tournament Rulebook. (n.d.). USAPA Pickleball 2019 Official Tournament Rulebook [PDF file]. Retrieved from https://www.usapa.org/docs/ifp/USAPA-Rulebook.pdf .

Publication types