JAMA Ophthalmology Survey Finds Low Protective Eyewear Use Among Pickleball Players

A survey published online Feb. 26, 2026 in JAMA Ophthalmology found low reported use of protective eyewear among pickleball players: 20 percent of 175 professional players and 45.27 percent of 148 amateur players said they wore protection. The study, led by Daniel Henick, M.D., of Yale School of Medicine, analyzed self-reported eyewear use and attitudes across 323 respondents and is indexed under DOI 10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2026.0027.

The investigators described the work as a survey study examining trends in protective eyewear use and attitudes toward protective eyewear. Study participants were separated by playing level, allowing comparisons between professionals, amateur beginners and amateur advanced players; specific survey items, recruitment methods and response rates are reported in the full article. Daniel Henick is listed as corresponding author with contact daniel.henick@yale.edu, and JAMA Network editorial materials note the paper includes additional authors, contributions, disclosures and funding details.

The report highlights important subgroup patterns. Among amateurs who reported any eyewear use, six in 10 (61.19 percent) said they used their own regular prescription glasses rather than dedicated protective eyewear. Within the amateur cohort, more frequent eyewear use was reported by advanced amateurs compared with amateur beginners — 53.97 percent versus 11.11 percent. The difference in reported use between professionals and amateurs was statistically significant in the release materials, summarized as χ21, 23.69; P < 0.001.

Reasons for choosing or avoiding eyewear were recorded in the survey. Players who used eyewear cited "awareness of injury risk and knowing someone with an injury" as motivations for protection. Players who did not use eyewear cited "Discomfort with eyewear and never having considered the risk for eye injury" as barriers. The JAMA/EurekAlert summary also warns that many players used personal prescription glasses, which "may not meet the specifications for adequate protection."

The authors conclude with a recommendation aimed at players and organizers: "Given the rise in pickleball-related eye injuries, further efforts to improve the consistent use of high-quality protective eyewear seem warranted," the study team writes. For media inquiries or to request the full article and any media materials, JAMA Network Media Relations is listed at mediarelations@jamanetwork.org and the publication DOI is 10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2026.0027.

With only one in five professionals reporting protective eyewear use and a majority of amateur wearers relying on regular glasses, the study quantifies a gap between perceived safety and equipment standards that authors say should be addressed through education, product design and policy changes.