Abstract
Our goal was to present current data on the incidence of clavicle injuries presenting
for urgent evaluation and to report the sports activities associated with injury.
Using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database, the number
of clavicle fractures presenting to a representative sample of US hospitals was retrospectively
calculated and weighted estimates used to extrapolate this data to the US population.
Incidence estimates were obtained using validated analyses and US census data, with
sports injuries being noted and fractures stratified by sport. A total of 9 428 fractures
of the clavicle were reported, representing 357 155 injuries in the US population
over 5 years. The estimated incidence of clavicle fractures in the US presenting for
emergency care is 24.4 fractures per 100 000 person-years (95% confidence intervals
(CI), 22.8–26.1). The peak incidence was highest between ages 10–19 years. Men were
nearly 3 times as likely to sustain a clavicle fracture. Sports were a factor in 45%
of all clavicle fractures. In sports-related injuries, 16% of fractures occurred from
bicycling, followed by football (12%) and soccer (6%). In summary, injuries from bicycling
were the most common cause of clavicle fracture, followed by contact sports. Male
gender and younger age are risk factors for clavicle fractures.
Key word
clavicle fracture - epidemiology - sports-related
