Thinking of Getting a Trampoline? Think Again

It seems like a good idea: instead of running out to Pump It Up's drop-in playtime, why not get your own trampoline, put it in the backyard and let your family bounce the hours away?

But it may not be smart at all.

A home trampoline isn't safe, pure and simple, says the American Academy of Pediatrics. Children bounce, often together, on home trampolines, and end up with cervical spine injuries and other problems. The Academy has issued a new statement discouraging the use of home trampolines.

The injury statistics from trampolines are sobering: emergency rooms see more than 100,000 injuries each year from them. Nets and padding do little to mitigate injuries, the Academy says.

"As best we can tell, the addition of safety nets and padding has actually not changed the injuries we have seen," said Dr. Susannah Briskin, who helped write the new Academy statement. She's a sports medicine specialist.

Other medical groups besides the American Academy of Pediatrics are also concerned about trampolines and issued statements on them. They "discouraged recreational and playground use of trampolines and urged caution with and further study of trampoline use in supervised training and physical education settings," according to the Pediatrics group.