The risk of snow sport injury in pediatric patients

Biomechanical technology of injury prevention in the training of specialists in physical education and sports

Purpose: to develop and experimentally test the biomechanical technology of injury prevention of future specialists in physical education and sports in the process of professional training (rock climbing for example). Material and Methods. The participants of this study were 84 male students engaged in amateur climbing aged 18-19 years. All athletes were also students of physical education faculties of Ukrainian universities; 40 athletes were in the experimental group and 44 athletes were in the control group. The biomechanical technology for injury prevention in the training of specialists in physical education and sports has been developed on rock climbing  for example. Developed biomechanical technology for injury prevention contains 3 areas: 1 - theoretical; 2 - analytical; 3 - practical. Injury risk (incidence) was defined as the number of injuries to the total number of athletes in the analyzed group. Relative risk (incidence rate ratio) was determined by the ratio of risk in the control group to the risk in the experimental group. The chance of injury was defined as the ratio of the number of injuries to the number of uninjured athletes in the analyzed group. The relative chance (Odds Ratio) was defined as the chances of injury in the control group to the chances of injury in the experimental group. These indicators were determined separately for low, medium and severe finger injuries. Results. The applied technology of injury prevention significantly influences the reduction of the number of injuries of athletes – future specialists on the physical education and sports (on rock climbing for example). It is established that the application of the developed technology of injury prevention reduces the risk of finger injuries: low complexity – in 2.364 times (95% CI = 0.925-6.041, P> 0,05) times; medium complexity – in 3.333 times (95% CI = 1.001-11.096, P (Fisher) = 0.030); high complexity – in 8.182 times (95% CI = 1.084-61.749, P (Fisher) = 0.011). Conclusions. The application of the developed biomechanical technology of injury prevention in the process of training specialists in physical education and sports significantly reduces the risk of injury to students.

Pediatric snow sport injuries differ by age

BACKGROUND

Unintentional injury is the leading cause of death among pediatric patients. There were 13,436 injuries related to snow sports in those younger than 15 in 2015, with 4.8% requiring admission. These sports are high-risk given the potential for injury even when using protective equipment. We hypothesized that snow sport injury patterns would differ based on patient age.

METHODS

A cross-sectional analysis of the 2009 and 2012 Kids' Inpatient Database was performed. Cases of injuries were identified and analyzed using ICD-9 codes. National estimates were obtained using case weighting. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess for confounders.

RESULTS

Within 745 admissions, there was a statistically significant decrease in skull/facial fractures with increasing age and a statistically significant increase in abdominal injuries with increasing age. Children in early and middle childhood were at increased odds of being hospitalized with skull/facial fractures, while older children were more likely hospitalized with abdominal injuries.

CONCLUSIONS

Within the pediatric snow sport population, younger children are more likely to experience head injuries, while older children are more likely to experience abdominal injuries. Further research is needed to determine the origin of this difference, and continued legislation on helmets is also necessary in reducing intracranial injuries.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

III.