A new study has found some of the common injuries caused by walking dogs on a lead, with traumatic brain injury (TBI) named among the top three.
The study looked at hospitalisations in the US, and named the most common injuries as finger fractures, traumatic brain injuries and a shoulder sprain.
Researchers also found that women and all adults aged 65 and older were more likely to sustain serious injuries when walking a dog.
While the researchers clarify that they "strongly encourage people to leash their dogs", they say that they want more awareness around the possibility of accidents with leads.
TBIs identified in the study consisted of head injuries including brain contusions (a bruise of the brain tissue), epidural hematomas (bleeding in above the brain's outer membrane) and subdural hematomas (bleeding beneath the brain's outer membrane).
To find the most common injuries, the researchers tracked accident and emergency data over 20 years.
Their findings, published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, revealed that 422,659 adults sought treatment for leashed dog walking related injuries from 2001 to 2020.
As well as the three most common injuries, it was found that TBI and hip fracture were the two most common injuries among adults age 65 and older.
Likewise, women with injuries related to walking a dog on a leash were 50 percent more likely to sustain a fracture than men.
"Clinicians should be aware of these risks and convey them to patients, especially women and older adults," says Edward McFarland, the study's senior author and director of the Division of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery at Johns Hopkins Medicine.
"We encourage clinicians to screen for pet ownership, assess fracture and fall risk, and discuss safe dog walking practices at regular health maintenance visits for these vulnerable groups.
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