Playground Injuries mostly due to Falls 

The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has long recognized the potential hazards that exist with the use of playground equipment, with over 200,000 estimated emergency room-treated injuries annually. The most recent study of 2,691 playground equipment-related incidents reported to the CPSC from 2001-2008 indicated that falls are the most common hazard pattern (44% of injuries) followed by equipment-related hazards, such as breakage, tip over, design, and assembly (23%). 1 Other hazard patterns involved entrapment and colliding other children or stationary equipment. Playground-related deaths reported to the Commission involved entanglement of ropes, leashes, or clothing; falls; and impact from equipment tip over or structural failure.

The safety of each individual piece of playground equipment as well as the layout of the entire play area should be considered when designing or evaluating a playground for safety. Since falls are a very common playground hazard pattern, the installation and maintenance of fall-zone protective surfacing under and around all equipment is crucial to protect children from severe head injuries. Because all playgrounds present some challenge and because children can be expected to use equipment in unintended and unanticipated ways, adult supervision is highly recommended.

A playground should allow children to develop gradually and test their skills by providing a series of graduated challenges. The challenges presented should be appropriate for age related abilities and should be ones that children can perceive and choose to undertake. Toddlers, preschool and school-age children differ dramatically, not only in physical size and ability, but also in their intellectual and social skills. Therefore, age-appropriate playground designs should accommodate these differences with regard to the type, scale, and the layout of equipment.

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