Original ContributionsSerious winter sport injuries in children and adolescents requiring hospitalization☆,☆☆
Section snippets
Case 1
During a ski lesson, an 11-year-old male skier collided with a tree at high speed. He suffered immediate loss of consciousness. A nearby emergency medical technician responded, using basic life-support techniques while maintaining cervical spine precautions. Bag-valve-mask (BVM) ventilation was initiated. The patient's Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score was 3, his pupils were normally reactive, and his vital signs were stable. Following rapid-sequence intubation, the patient was transported by
Methods
PCMC is a level-one trauma center and the only designated pediatric facility for an area encompassing 7 major winter specialty resorts. All patient records of injuries sustained through participation in a winter sport and requiring inpatient hospitalization were collected prospectively and extracted for retrospective analysis. Data were collected from 1996 to 2000. We defined winter sports as skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, or lugeing. All children presenting to PCMC for evaluation for
Results
A total of 101 patients were enrolled in the study. The mean age of the patients was 10.7 years, with an age range of 4 to 17 years. Males constituted 68% of the patient population (Table 2). Most of the patients (71%) were skiers. Snowboarders constituted 26% of the patients, subjects with snowmobile-related injuries constituted 3%, and 1 patient was injured while on a luge. As shown in Table 2, there were no observed gender-related differences in types of sports-related injury, but there
Discussion
This study describes serious injuries sustained through participation in winter sports exclusively in a pediatric and adolescent population, and helps to clarify the epidemiology of this public health problem. Almost one third of patients requiring hospitalization suffered head injuries. This population of patients also had high AIS values and ISS scores, and long hospital stays. We found that none of the patients with serious head injuries used protective safety equipment such as a skiing
Conclusion
Injuries sustained through participation in winter sports may be associated with significant morbidity and possibly with mortality in children and adolescents. Injury-prevention strategies for these groups should focus on head injuries and helmet use.
References (25)
- et al.
Severe snowboarding injuries
Injury
(1995) - et al.
Snow-related recreational injuries in children: assessment of morbidity and management strategies
J Pediatr Surg
(1999) - et al.
Snowboarding injuries in children and adolescents
Am J Emerg Med
(1999) - et al.
Helmet availability at skiing and snowboarding rental shops. A survey of Colorado ski resorts rental practices
Am J Prev Med
(2002) - et al.
The Injury Fact Book
Skiing injuries
Am J Sports Med
(1999)- et al.
Injury patterns with snowboarding
Am J Emerg Med
(1999) - et al.
Snowboarding accidents
Spoortverletz Sportschaden
(2000) - et al.
Risk of injury through snowboarding
J Trauma
(2000)
Ski injury statistics, 1982 to 1993, Jackson Hole Ski Resort
Am J Sports Med
Injury risk in first-time snowboarders versus first-time skiers
Am J Sports Med
Cited by (41)
A chilling reminder: Pediatric facial trauma from recreational winter activities
2016, International Journal of Pediatric OtorhinolaryngologyTraumatic brain injuries and computed tomography use in pediatric sports participants
2015, American Journal of Emergency MedicinePediatric management by mobile intensive care units in the northern French Alps emergency network
2015, Archives de PediatrieEmployee perception of a mandated helmet policy at vail resorts
2013, Wilderness and Environmental MedicineCitation Excerpt :Participation in snow sports conveys a relatively high risk of injury: more than 10,000 traumatic brain injuries related to skiing or snowboarding were seen in US emergency departments in 2002 alone.1 Head injuries are a leading cause of hospital admission and account for a majority of fatalities due to downhill skiing or snowboarding.2 In 1999 the Consumer Product Safety Commission published a report projecting a 44% reduction in head injuries with the adoption of universal helmet use for alpine skiing and snowboarding, and a recent meta-analysis reported a 35% reduction in head injury among persons wearing helmets.3,4
Searching for ski-lift injury: An uphill struggle?
2010, Journal of Science and Medicine in SportFacial Trauma: How Dangerous Are Skiing and Snowboarding?
2010, Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial SurgeryCitation Excerpt :Snowboarding injuries showed similar results, with falls accounting for 59.4% of injuries and collisions with other persons accounting for 25.2%. In the literature falls in snowboarders are reported to be liable for 69% to 93% of cases27,30,36,37 and collisions for 4% to 26%.27,30,32,36 Furthermore, younger persons have a much higher injury risk while skiing38,39 and snowboarding.39,40
- ☆
Address reprints requests to: Elisabeth Guenther Skokan, MD, MPH, Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Primary Children's Medical Center, 100 No. Medical Drive, Salt Lake City, UT, 84113. Email: [email protected]
- ☆☆
0735-6757/03/2102-0002$30.00/0