Estimated number, percentages and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of paintball game related injuries treated in hospital emergency departments, by cause of injury, body part affected, diagnosis, disposition at emergency department discharge, location of occurrence, and activity, for persons ages 7 years and older, United States, 1997–2001
| Characteristic | No* (95% CI) | % (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|
| *Estimates may be unstable because based on <20 cases or coefficient of variation ⩾30%. | ||
| †Includes struck by paintball gun, struck against something, burn, and cut. | ||
| ‡Includes hemorrhage, internal injury, puncture, and other unspecified. | ||
| ¶Includes handling paintball gun and other. | ||
| Cause | ||
| Shot by paintball gun | 7173 (5740 to 8606) | 59.8 (47.8 to 71.7) |
| Overexertion | 2145 (1084 to 3206) | 17.9 (9.0 to 26.7) |
| Fall | 1111 (468 to 1755) | 9.3 (3.9 to 14.6) |
| Other† | 1569 (653 to 2484) | 13.1 (5.4 to 20.7) |
| Body part effected | ||
| Eye | 5126 (3676 to 6575) | 42.7 (30.6 to 54.8) |
| Other head/neck | 1390 (834 to 1947) | 11.6 (7.0 to 16.2) |
| Torso | 1403 (589 to 2216) | 11.7 (4.9 to 18.5) |
| Upper extremity | 1291 (791 to 1792) | 10.8 (6.6 to 14.9) |
| Lower extremity | 2753 (1204 to 4303) | 22.9 (10.0 to 35.9) |
| Unknown | 34 (−)* | 0.3 (−)* |
| Diagnosis | ||
| Contusion/abrasion | 4920 (3748 to 6092) | 41.0 (31.2 to 50.8) |
| Strain/sprain | 1640 (792 to 2488) | 13.7 (6.6 to 20.7) |
| Laceration | 1293 (732 to 1855) | 10.8 (6.1 to 15.5) |
| Fracture | 783 (336 to 1230) | 6.5 (2.8 to 10.2) |
| Other‡ | 3362 (2244 to 4479) | 28.0 (18.7 to 37.3) |
| Disposition | ||
| Treated/released | 11459 (8411 to 14508) | 95.5 (70.1 to 120.9) |
| Hospitalized | 447 (−)* | 3.7 (−)* |
| Observation/unknown | 92 (−)* | 0.8(−)* |
| Locale where injury occurred | ||
| Home/farm/mobile home | 3408 (1747 to 5069) | 28.4 (14.6 to 42.3) |
| Public street | 909 (−)* | 7.6 (−)* |
| Sports arena | 3153 (1492 to 4814) | 26.3 (12.4 to 40.1) |
| Unknown | 4527 (3294 to 5760) | 37.7 (27.5 to 48.0) |
| Activity | ||
| Playing paintball | 6335 (3837 to 8834) | 52.8 (32.0 to 73.6) |
| Other¶ | 703 (−)* | 5.9 (−)* |
| Unknown | 4959 (3826 to 6093) | 41.3 (31.9 to 50.8) |