United States – October 29, 2026 -- The rate of e-bike-related emergency department (ED) visits rose 760.2% between January–August 2023 and January–August 2026, while traditional bicycle visits increased only 7.9%, according to a Truveta Data analysis.
E-bike visits climbed from 1.2 to 10.1 per 100,000 people with an ED visit. The traditional bicycle rate moved from 59.4 to 64.1 per 100,000. Traditional bicycles still dominate in absolute volume: the study period recorded 63,811 traditional bicycle ED visits against 4,769 for e-bikes.
Pediatric e-bike ED visit rate rises 19.1-fold to 35.7 per 100,000
Patients aged 0–17 saw the steepest increase, from 1.9 to 35.7 per 100,000, against a 1.5-fold rise for traditional bicycles in the same group. E-bike rates also grew 7.7-fold among 18–24-year-olds, 7.4-fold among 25–44-year-olds, 7.6-fold among 45–64-year-olds and 3.2-fold among those 65 and older.
Traditional bicycle rates were nearly flat by comparison: 1.19-fold for ages 18–24, 1.09-fold for ages 25–44, 0.92-fold for ages 45–64 and 0.95-fold for ages 65 and older.
Under-18 e-bike riders show 7.8% traumatic brain injury rate versus 6.0% on traditional bikes
Across all ages, traumatic brain injury rates were comparable: 5.8% of e-bike visits and 5.6% of traditional bicycle visits. The gap appears in the youngest group. Among adults 45–64, the rates were 3.9% for e-bikes and 5.6% for traditional bicycles. Among those 65 and older, they were 4.2% and 6.7%.
Patients under 18 accounted for 31.1% of e-bike visits and 29.3% of traditional bicycle visits. Adults aged 18–24 made up 15.0% of e-bike visits versus 9.8% of traditional bicycle visits. Men and boys accounted for 75.9% of e-bike patients and 76.3% of traditional bicycle patients.
Fractures reach 28.3% of e-bike injury visits, ahead of the 25.1% on traditional bicycles
Superficial injuries and contusions were the most common diagnosis, at 35.0% of e-bike visits and 39.9% of traditional bicycle visits. Head and neck injuries were the most common location for both bike types, at nearly one-third of visits, though they were less frequent among e-bike visits.
E-bike visits more often involved injuries to the wrist, hand and fingers, the lower leg and ankle, and the foot and toes. Shoulder, upper arm and trunk injuries were more common among traditional bicycle visits.
Study extends earlier national data showing a 389% e-bike visit surge from 2020 to 2024
A previous analysis of US ED surveillance data found e-bike visit counts rose 389% from 2020 to 2024, against 6.4% for bicycles. The Truveta analysis extends that trend through August 2026.
The researchers identified e-bike visits from diagnosis codes, requiring visits to be at least 30 days apart to count as separate injuries. They compared only January–August periods across years to control for seasonal use. Prior research cited in the analysis reported helmet use among injured e-bike riders at about 31%.