Trampoline Injuries On Rise In Massachusetts As Parks Go Unregulated

BOSTON (CBS) - Trampoline parks seem to be popping up everywhere and injuries are also soaring.

Just ask 4-year-old Hunter.  "The flying part was fun," he told WBZ-TV.

But after Hunter flew into the air at one of those parks he came back down and broke his leg.

"He just landed funny on his leg and he couldn't move his leg," his mom, Miriam Lazarto, explained.

The next day Hunter was in a full leg cast and using a walker to a get around.

"When I was there it was so busy and so crowded. People clearly were not following some of the rules. Lots of people were jumping on the same trampoline," said Lazarto.

Those rules and warning signs are hard to miss inside these parks.

"I knew obviously that, you know, it's one of those activities that they could hurt themselves," Lazarto said.

Trampoline injuries are on the rise. Emergency room visits for injuries involving a trampoline have seen a jump of more than 50-percent over the past 5 years in Massachusetts.

According to the Center for Health Information and Analysis, ER visits due to trampoline injuries rose from 409 in 2010 to 650 in 2015. There is no way to know if these injuries happened in the backyard or at an indoor park.

"There are a fair amount of injuries we see from the trampolines," Dr. Teriggi Ciccone told WBZ.

As an ER doctor at Winchester Hospital Dr. Ciccone treats many children with these injuries. He tells us the American Academy of Pediatrics discourages any recreational trampoline use.

Dr. Ciccone also says he finds information on trampoline park safety lacking.

"The data for the dangers is definitely stronger for home trampoline use. There is not as much data for the commercial trampoline parks," he said.

And that's because, for the most part, these parks are widely unregulated.

In Massachusetts, officials require serious injury reports from amusement rides, go-carts, inflatables, climbing walls, and challenge courses. This regulation does not cover trampolines.

Compare that to New Hampshire where trampolines are regulated. Officials added them to the list in 2015 when they saw the indoor parks starting to open up.

For now, Hunter will be sticking to the Legos instead of trampolines.

"Don't get me wrong, these places are so fun for the kids so I wouldn't want them to go away," said Lazarto. "I think they have to be better regulated."