Everybody thinks the handle makes it safer, but it also makes it harder to bail out. It's easy to get hurt if you're not wearing your safety gear. In 1999, in-line skaters suffered 95,000 injuries, and skateboarders accounted for another 60,000 emergency room visits. But the scooter is closing fast. Last September, the 8,600 scooter injuries outpaced in-line skating accidents for the first time.
Parents are a critical safety component.
The increase is astronomical compared with the 3,300 injuries reported in 1999. The alarming numbers have prompted the American Medical Association's House of Delegates to recommend that doctors counsel patients and parents about wearing safety gear. They absolutely should wear the appropriate safety equipment, and it's essential they wear a helmet. But we're also seeing concussion. And with children especially you always worry about head injury.