Descriptive study of sledding injuries in Canadian children

Abstract

Objectives-(1) To describe the characteristics of sledding injuries presenting to a pediatric emergency department and (2) To describe the sledding environment that leads to childhood sledding injuries. Setting-A pediatric hospital emergency department in Ottawa, Canada and identified sledding sites in the region. Methods-All patients less than 18 years with sled related injuries were included. Questionnaires were completed gathering information on the sled operator, the sled, the sledding site, and the injury. Site visits were made to designated and nondesignated sledding hills in the Ottawa region to record data regarding sled operators, sleds, and the sledding environment. Results-Ninety five patients were identified with sledding injuries and 81 (85%) completed the questionnaire. The mean age was 9.9 years (range 8 months to 17 years). The majority were male (63%). Most injuries occurred on non-designated sledding hills in the community (70%).Mild to moderate injuries were most common, however nine patients (11%) were admitted to hospital. Fifty one per cent had adult supervision at the time of injury compared with 86% observed at the site visits. Common mechanisms of injuries were collisions with objects (33%), falls in icy conditions (28%), and going oV jumps (16%). Most serious injuries occurred with contact with motor vehicles. There was no relationship between the type of sled used and the likelihood of injury. Conclusions-Sledding hills which have obstacles, icy conditions, jumps, or proximity to roads may result in more childhood injuries. Children with no adult supervision are likely at higher risk of injury. (Injury Prevention 1999;5:198-202)

Winter storm-related injuries in Oklahoma, January 2007

“…The majority of previous studies reviewed cases from only one or a limited number of facilities that were often urban, referral hospitals or served a limited geographic area (Broder et al, 2005;Hartling et al, 1999;Lewis & Lasater, 1994;Ralis, 1981;Smith & Nelson, 1998). Overall hospitalization rate in our analysis (8%) was lower than the 18% reported in a tertiary-care-center study (Broder et al, 2005), and the sledding injury hospitalization rate (8%) was also lower than the 11%-15% observed in other studies (Lee et al, 1999;Major et al, 1999). In contrast, we discovered higher severity of injury compared with an occupational clinic study (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, 1994); we identified 21% fractures and 61% superficial injury, sprains and strains versus 13% fractures and 87% less-severe injury in the occupational clinic setting.…”

“…Sledding on ice, as opposed to snow, can be particularly dangerous because higher speeds and limited steering while sliding on ice can lead to substantial injury from high-impact collisions with such immovable objects as trees, parked cars, or mailboxes (Lee et al, 1999;Major et al, 1999). Although MVCs can also cause serious injury, the high proportion of sprains and strains and relatively lower proportion of fractures or open wounds associated with MVCs in this evaluation imply that certain ice-related MVCs might have been relatively low-speed incidents from sliding on ice that can occur even when driving cautiously.…”

“…Common mechanisms of injury include motorvehicle collisions (MVCs), falls, sledding crashes, being struck by falling ice or tree limbs, injury from cleanup activities (e.g., being cut by a chainsaw or falling from a ladder while trimming damaged trees), and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning from heating homes with such alternative sources as gasoline-powered generators or propane heaters when electrical power is unavailable as a result of the storm (Broder, Mehrotra, & Tintinalli, 2005; Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, 1994, 2004Daley, Smith, Paz-Argandona, Malilay, & McGeehin, 2000;Hartling, Pickett, & Brison, 1999;Houck & Hampson, 1997;Lee, Osmond, Vaidyanathan, Sutcliffe, & Klassen, 1999;Lewis & Lasater, 1994;Major, Guest, Smith, Barker, & Burns, 1999;Ralis, 1981;Smith & Nelson, 1998;Wrenn & Conners, 1997). On January 12, 2007, a severe winter storm occurred throughout Oklahoma for 4 days, leaving ice accumulation on roadways, trees, and power lines and causing widespread power outages and hazardous driving conditions for 2 weeks after the onset of the storm.…”

Sledding-Related Injuries Among Children Requiring Emergency Treatment

“…This is consistent with findings in other studies. 3,24 Such a high percentage of children sledding without supervision leads one to question whether sledding is another skill for which parental expectations may be inappropriate. Additional research is needed to address this question.…”

Head Injuries in Winter Sports: Downhill Skiing, Snowboarding, Sledding, Snowmobiling, Ice Skating and Ice Hockey

“…24 The most serious sledding injuries were incurred after the rider struck a tree or another stationary object in 60% and 76% of injuries. 25,26 Although the incidence of collisions with motor vehicles is low, these often have catastrophic consequences, 26,27 with head injury much more common. 28 Although many studies advocate helmet use for sledders, the efficacy of helmet use in sledding is uncertain, and there are no specific helmets designed for sledding.. Helmet use among sledders is significantly lower than for downhill skiing or snowboarding, with only about 3% of sledders wearing some form of head protection.…”