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The Daily Insight

What sport has the highest rate of traumatic brain injury?

Author

Sophia Hammond

Updated on May 04, 2026

What sport has the highest rate of traumatic brain injury?

The following sports/recreational activities represent the categories contributing to the highest number of estimated head injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms in 2018.

  • Cycling: 64,411.
  • Football: 51,892.
  • Baseball and Softball: 24,516.
  • Basketball: 38,898.

What is the most common brain injury in sports?

Cerebral Concussion Concussion, or MTBI, is the most common form of head injury seen in athletes.

What sport has the most cases of CTE?

The number of confirmed CTE cases is greatest among boxers and football players; however, CTE has also been diagnosed in soccer, ice hockey, wrestling, and rugby players [2].

How many NFL players have killed themselves due to CTE?

Because you can imagine people seem to be comfortable and cool with at least one out of 10 NFL players having this disease, which is what we’ve seen over the last 10 years, that one out of 10 who died have had it. It’s actually a much higher percentage in the last five years. We’re comfortable with adults getting it.

How do boxers avoid brain injury?

The only way to prevent boxing head injuries is to avoid head trauma and concussions. A study with high school football players found that for every one-pound increase in neck strength, the odds of concussion decreased by 5%.

How do sports injuries affect the brain?

Recent research has found that recurring blows to the head can cause mild traumatic brain injury. Over time, this can lead to progressive brain disorders like chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), and create problems with mood and movement.

What sport has the most traumatic injuries?

Basketball causes the most injuries. Basketball is a popular sport—more than 26 million youngsters ages 12 to 17 play it—but it causes the most injuries for players of all ages. Roughly 570,000 players were treated for injuries in the United States in 2012, and 8,000 of them were hospitalized.

What sport gets the most injuries?

Basketball. According to 2019 statistics, basketball causes the most injuries compared to any other team sport. Young people and adults who play basketball are exposed to various injuries including fractures, facial injuries, deep thigh bruises, ankle sprains and knee injuries.

Which youth sport has the most injuries?

What percentage of boxers get brain damage?

Chronic traumatic brain injury (CTBI) associated with boxing occurs in approximately 20% of professional boxers. Risk factors associated with CTBI include increased exposure (i.e., duration of career, age of retirement, total number of bouts), poor performance, increased sparring, and apolipoprotein (APOE) genotype.