Mountainbiking--a dangerous sport: comparison with bicycling on oral and maxillofacial trauma.
The popularity of bicycling is reflected in the number of cycling-related oral and maxillofacial injuries. Five hundred and sixty-two injured bicyclists (10.3% of all trauma patients) were registered at the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Innsbruck, Austria, between 1991 and 1996, accounting for 31% of all sports-related accidents and 48.4% of all traffic accidents. A review of the patient records revealed more severe injury profiles in sixty mountainbikers, with 55% facial bone fractures, 22% dentoalveolar trauma and 23% soft tissue injuries, compared to 502 street cyclists showing 50.8% dentoalveolar trauma, 34.5% facial bone fractures and 14% soft tissue lesions. The dominant fracture site in bicyclists was the zygoma (30.8%), whereas mountainbikers sustained an impressive 15.2% LeFort I, II and III fractures. Condyle fractures were more common in bicyclists, with 18.8% compared to 10.8% in mountainbikers. Reduction of facial injuries due to cycling-related accidents needs appropriate design of helmets with faceguards and compulsory helmet use for all cyclists, and particularly mountainbikers.
Gassner
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Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Innsbruck, Austria. Robert.Gassner@uibk.ac.at
Tuli
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Emshoff
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Waldhart
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D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001317:Austria / Q000453:epidemiology; D001642:Bicycling / Q000293:injuries* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005147:Facial Bones / Q000293:injuries; D005151:Facial Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D007572:Jaw Fractures / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008446:Maxillofacial Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012737:Sex Factors; D012887:Skull Fractures / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D018677:Tooth Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*