As use of electric micromobility vehicles has surged, so too have injuries related to the devices. E-bike injuries have doubled every year from 2017 to 2022 and e-scooter injuries have increased by 45 percent, according to a study that’s believed to be the first investigation into recent injury patterns in the United States.

The study by the University of California-San Francisco (UCSF), published in JAMA Network Open, a monthly medical journal by the American Medical Association, found that e-bicycle injuries increased from 751 in 2017 to 23,493 in 2022, and e-scooter injuries rose from 8,566 to 56,847 over that timeframe. Altogether, there were nearly 2.5 million bicycle injuries, more than 304,000 scooter injuries, 45,586 e-bicycle injuries, and 189,517 e-scooter injuries reported in the U.S.

Both conventional and electric bike and scooter injuries were more common in urban settings. Electric bike and scooter riders were older and more likely to participate in risky behaviors, such as riding while intoxicated and without a helmet than conventional vehicle riders.

Injured e-riders tended to be slightly older and wore helmets less often than conventional riders. E-scooter riders were more likely to sustain internal injuries than conventional scooter riders, while upper extremity injuries were more common among non-electric riders.

Read the full report here.