Trends of snowboarding-related fractures that presented to emergency departments in the United States, 2010 to 2016.

Background: Since it was introduced as an Olympic sport in 1998, snowboarding has drawn the participation of individuals of all ages. Despite the growing popularity of this sport, individuals can suffer from a number of musculoskeletal injuries. The specific goals of the study were to: (I) compare the number of injuries and trends of snowboarding injuries; (II) identify the injury occurrences, trends, and incidence of snowboarding-related fractures; and (III) identify the injury occurrences and trends of snowboarding-related fractures by body part.

Methods: The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database was queried for snowboarding injuries and snowboarding-related fractures treated in US emergency departments (EDs) from 2010-2016. The weighted estimate of the number of injuries were obtained by using the NEISS statistical weight calculations that were provided in the data. An estimated total of 248,388 patients (mean age =20 years) experienced a snowboarding-related injury. Linear regression analysis was used to analyze annual trends of snowboarding-related fractures and the snowboarding-related fractures by body part; reported as the correlation coefficient (r) and the coefficient of determination (R).

Results: The estimated annual number of injuries decreased from 56,223 injuries in 2010 to 17,667 injuries in 2016 (r=-0.967, R=0.936, P<0.001). The most common types of injuries were fractures (31.7%), strains/sprains (25.2%), contusions (10.9%), concussions (10.0%), internal injuries (7.2%), and dislocations (4.0%). From 2010 to 2016, the estimated annual number of fractures decreased from 18,757 in 2010 to 4,539 in 2016 (r=-0.978, R=0.957, P<0.001), and the annual incidence of snowboarding-related fractures decreased by 23.1%. The most common location of snowboarding-related fractures was the upper extremity, more specifically the wrist (32.3%). There was a decrease in the estimated annual number of fractures of the wrist (r=-0.965, R=0.932, P<0.001), forearm (r=-0.821, R=0.861, P=0.023), shoulder (r=-0.872, R=0.760, P=0.011), elbow (r=-0.901, R=0.813, P=0.006), and lower leg (r=-0.929, R=0.864, P=0.002).

Conclusions: With the growing popularity of snowboarding in the US, it is important to know the common types of injuries that occur. This study found that fractures were the most common injuries, especially of the upper extremity.