E-bike injuries are more widespread in Orange County, no longer just a coastal problem, doctors say

ORANGE, Calif. (KABC) -- Doctors at the Children's Hospital of Orange County say e-bike injuries were once a coastal issue in O.C., but the trauma medical director said Thursday that the problem is more widespread.

Dr. Laura Goodman said the top five cities for e-bike injuries were Huntington Beach, Irvine, Santa Ana, Orange and Newport Beach.

Along with the problem spreading across the county, e-bike injuries in children at CHOC rose from seven in 2019 to 116 in 2024.

Goodman said that just in the last two weeks, she saw two teens go through emergency neurosurgery at CHOC, "to clear out blood from the brain after having severe e-bike crashes."

She explained it was difficult for her as a mother to tell parents the bikes they purchased for their children may be the reason for lifelong changes.

"Really difficult. It's devastating for them to see their kids have severe injuries and to know that they may have lifelong changes in just an instant, in something that they weren't thinking of as being dangerous," Goodman said.

Most parents tell Goodman it's a way to help get them through life because it just gets busy.

"I understand where e-bikes fit in terms of getting kids in those early teenage years more mobility so their parents don't have to drop them off everywhere," Goodman said.

Data collected from 2019 to 2024 at CHOC shows teens are the group most often coming into the trauma center, with those ages 14 to 16 at the top at 111 injuries. Ages 11 to 13 came in second at 73, followed by 7-10 at 15 injuries.

Goodman said it was clear the injuries are more severe when helmets aren't on, speed goes up and more teens ditch old-school pedaling to go electric.

"The differences between e-bikes and regular bikes are more internal injuries, so head injuries with bleeding. We see skull fractures. We see facial fractures. We see extremity fractures. We see internal organ injuries, shattered spleens, injured livers - things like that," Goodman said.

Counseling parents is another part of this doctor's job and she says they do bring up e-bikes.

"'Should I get my kid an e bike?' I don't want to be the one who says no, but I also want them to take all the precautions to protect their kids so they don't end up with these really severe injuries," Goodman said.

Goodman said so far this year, doctors at CHOC have seen nearly 40 e-bike-related cases.