Trampolines and childhood injuries

Trampolines- are they a good idea?

Many patients ask me my thoughts about trampolines and their pros and cons. I have a very strong opinion about the usage and supervision of children on trampolines, most of them are cons.
We see many trampoline injuries in our clinic from sprains and strains, pelvis injuries, neck injuries, whiplash, knee and hip injuries and even fractures from falling off the trampoline or an impact with other children on the trampoline. Many people have a trampoline in the back yard, some with protective nets and some without. Parents feel the net is the best prevention of injuries, while it may help the best thing is setting guidelines such as only one child on per time, proper adult supervision and limiting time to 5-7 minutes before switching to another childs turn. This prevents several things, the infamous 'double bounce' and prolonged repetative impact on the spine. As a child we think that the double bounce is fun, however it causes jarring on the spine, neck and lowback that may cause trauma and spinal subluxations causing pain or other related issues.

Around 20 percent of injuries to the spinal cord caused by trampoline use are due to jumpers bumping into each other, trying to do stunts, falling off the trampoline or falling onto the frame or springs of the trampoline, reports BrainandSpinalCord.org.
In calendar year 2006, reports the Consumer Product Safety Review, trampolines caused an estimated 109,522 injuries. Of those injuries, children from 4 years old and younger sustained an estimated 15,541; children from 5 to 14, an estimated 71.265; older children and young adults 15 to 24, an estimated 14,571; adults 25 to 64, an estimated 7,836; and adults 65 and older sustained an estimated 309 injuries. About 104,729 of those individuals of all ages who were injured were treated in emergency rooms and released. The rest, an approximately 4,793, were either hospitalized or dead on arrival. SpineUniverse.com reports six trampoline-related deaths since 1990.

If your child has been injured on the trampoline make sure she is checked by a doctor of chiropractic for spinal subluxations and injuries before they become bigger issues. We are located at Family First Chiropractic and Wellness, 142 Erickson Drive, Red Deer 403-347-3261 www.family1stchiro.ca