gms | German Medical Science

Deutscher Kongress für Orthopädie und Unfallchirurgie
73. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Unfallchirurgie
95. Tagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Orthopädie und Orthopädische Chirurgie
50. Tagung des Berufsverbandes der Fachärzte für Orthopädie und Unfallchirurgie

21. - 24.10.2009, Berlin

Risk factors in alpine skiing – a prospective controlled multicenter survey in 782 patients

Meeting Abstract

  • R. Hasler - Inselspital, Notfallzentrum Chirurgie, Bern, Switzerland
  • S. Dubler - Inselspital, Notfallzentrum Chirurgie, Bern, Switzerland
  • D. Heim - Spital Frutigen, Frutigen, Switzerland
  • J. Spycher - Spital Interlaken, Unterseen, Switzerland
  • H. Zimmermann - Universität Bern, Inselspital, Notfallzentrum, Bern, Switzerland
  • A. Exadaktylos - Inselspital, Notfallzentrum Chirurgie, Bern, Switzerland

Deutscher Kongress für Orthopädie und Unfallchirurgie. 73. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Unfallchirurgie, 95. Tagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Orthopädie und Orthopädische Chirurgie, 50. Tagung des Berufsverbandes der Fachärzte für Orthopädie. Berlin, 21.-24.10.2009. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2009. DocWI13-1005

doi: 10.3205/09dkou123, urn:nbn:de:0183-09dkou1233

Published: October 15, 2009

© 2009 Hasler et al.
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Outline

Text

Problem: According to consumer and insurance studies, about 2.1 Mio. skiers lead to 1000 injuries per skiing day on average, in Switzerland. New ski material and carving techniques allow skiers to progress to higher speeds and this might contribute to the high number of injuries. Up to now there is only little back ground information on risk factors and prehospital care. We therefore conducted a prospective controlled multicenter study to analyze risk factors leading to accidents in alpine skiing.

Method: All injured skiers admitted to our tertiary and two secondary trauma centers from November 2007 through April 2008 were analyzed by filling out a validated questionnaire incorporating 8 parameters: personal data, consumption of alcohol and drugs, skiing experience, experience of aggressive behavior on slopes, warm-up, snow, weather and slope conditions, information on skiing material, protectors worn, and assessment of risky riding and speeding. The same questionnaire was distributed to non-injured controls at the end of a skiing day. To detect the influence of the parameters on the dichotomous variable status (patient, control), multiple logistic regression was performed.

Results and conclusions: A total of 782 patients and 496 controls were included and analyzed. The following parameters reached statistical significance and are characteristic for the patients group: high readiness for risk (p=0.0365, odds ratio 0.69), low readiness for speed (p=0.0008, odds ratio 0.29), no aggressive behavior on slopes (p<0.0001, odds ratio 0.19), new skiing material (p=0.0228, odds ratio 0.59), warm-up (p=0.0015, odds ratio 1.79), old snow (p=0.0039, odds ratio 0.21 - 0.31) and powder snow (p=0.0055, odds ratio 0.25), drug consumption (p=0.0044, odds ratio 0.14), no alcohol consumption (p<0.0001, odds ratio 5.92).

According to risk factors emerging from the different parameters a pattern of the most likely behavior of patients in alpine skiing can be persumed. Although different kinds of protectors like helmets and back protectors may have an influence on trauma severity they don't seem to be highly characteristic neither for the patients nor for the controls group.