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. 2022 Apr 1;48(1):54.
doi: 10.1186/s13052-022-01227-4.

Trend of hoverboard related injuries at a pediatric emergency department

Valentina Ferro  1 , Raffaella Nacca  2 , Elena Boccuzzi  2 , Tatiana Federici  2 , Chiara Ossella  3 , Alessandra Merenda  4 , Renato Maria Toniolo  4 , Anna Maria Musolino  2 , Antonino Reale  2 , Umberto Raucci  2
Affiliations

Trend of hoverboard related injuries at a pediatric emergency department

Valentina Ferro et al. Ital J Pediatr. .

Abstract

Introduction: Understanding how the use of hoverboards (HBs) can affect a child's safety is crucial. We describe the characteristics of HB related injuries and provide key messages about child prevention when using these leisure devices.

Methods: This was a retrospective study at an emergency department (ED) of a level-III-trauma center from 2016 to 2019. We tested the differences in children presenting for injury associated with HBs between 2016-2017 and 2018-2019 to better describe the temporal trend of the phenomenon.

Results: The rate of Injury associated with HBs / Total injury per 1,000 increased from 0.84 in 2016 to 7.7 in 2017, and then there was a gradual decline. The likelihood of injury was more common in younger children, increasing by 17% with decreasing age in 2018-2019 compared with 2016-2017 (OR: 0.83; 95%CI: 0.71-0.97; p = 0.021). The occurrence of injury in the April-June period was over twice as common in 2018-2019 (OR: 2.05; 95%CI: 1.0-2.05; p = 0.05). Patients were over 4 times more likely to have injured the lower extremity during the 2018-2019 period rather than other body regions (OR: 4.58; 95%CI: 1.23-4.58; p = 0.02). The odds of the indoor injury were more than twice as high in 2018-2019 (OR: 2.04; 95%CI: 1.077-2.04; p = 0.03).

Conclusion: Despite a decrease in the frequency of HB related injuries after 2017, during the 2018-2019 period, the younger the children, the more they were exposed to injury risk, in addition to a greater occurrence of indoor injuries from HBs compared with 2016-2017. The enhancement of preventive measures is necessary to ensure child safety when using HBs.

Keywords: Child; Emergency; Hoverboard; Injury; Prevention; Safety.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Temporal trend of injuries associated with hoverboards in a hospital Emergency Department (2016-2019)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The occurrence of injuries associated with HBs monthly per year
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
The popularity of HBs in region Lazio from 2016 to 2019 extrapolated by Google Trends
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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