Abstract ID: 26-409
Electric Bicycle, Scooter, and Hoverboard Oculofacial Injuries in a National Cohort 2016-2025
Author: Daniel Azzam Base Hospital / Institution: Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine
Presentation Type: ePoster Presentation
Purpose
Electric two-wheeled transportation devices have gained popularity among city riders, however these carry considerable safety risk, without mandated safety gear. The authors aim to characterize oculofacial injuries associated with e-bikes, e-scooters, and e-hoverboards and evaluate trends related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods
The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) was queried for eye and face (eyelid, eye area, nose, and forehead) injuries by body part codes related to powered and non-powered bikes, scooters, and skateboards from 2016 to 2025, comparing pre- and post-COVID-19. The NEISS complex sampling design was utilized to extract national population projections of gender, age, and hospital admissions.
Results
A total of 843,568 cases were identified. A surge in oculofacial injuries after COVID-19 was observed in all electric-powered devices, including overall (+322%), e-scooters (+408%), e-hoverboards (+311%), and e-bikes (+229%). Simultaneously, a decline or no change was seen in non-powered devices after COVID-19, including overall (+11%), scooters (-64%), skateboards (-11%), and bikes (+21%). E-scooter injuries were associated with higher risk of hospital admission compared to non-powered scooters (6.9% vs 0%), while e-bike injuries conferred lower risk of hospital admission compared to bikes (2.1% vs 8.7%). While males accounted for 74.6% of injuries, female injuries were more often on electric-powered than non-powered devices (29.5% vs 24.2%). Average age was comparable between powered and non-powered devices (28.5 vs 27.3 years), however e-scooter injuries were associated with older age then non-powered scooters (29.5 vs 6.5 years).
Conclusion
There was a significant rise in oculofacial injuries related to electronic bikes, scooters, and hoverboards after the COVID-19 pandemic. The highest risk group was males in their first three decades. E-scooters conferred greater risk of hospital admission than non-powered scooters. These findings may inform preventative public health strategies for ocular safety.
Additional Authors
| First name | Last name | Base Hospital / Institution |
|---|---|---|
| Dhiresh | Bandaru | Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine |
| Seanna | Grob | Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine |