Horse-related injuries in a thoroughbred stabling area in Japan.
To investigate the demographic details and patterns of injuries related to horse handling, we reviewed 637 horse-related injuries in 581 stable- or stud-workers in a representative area of thoroughbred stabling in Japan. We found that (1) injuries occurred most frequently in a group of a relatively young workers, with a seasonal variation; (2) the principal mechanism of injury was kicks, which accounted for 39.2% of all injuries, including 11 serious and one lethal visceral injuries; (3) the upper half of the body was more frequently involved than the lower half; and (4) the peripheral bones (hand and foot) and the ribs accounted for more than half of 148 fractures. These findings are distinct from those in horse-riding injuries reported in the literature and emphasize the importance in developing preventive strategies specifically for workers in horse stables.
Iba
K
K
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan. ikousuke@hotmail.com
Wada
T
T
Kawaguchi
S
S
Fujisaki
T
T
Yamashita
T
T
Ishii
S
S
D000062:Accidents, Occupational / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000209:etiology*; D016489:Head Injuries, Closed / Q000209:etiology; D006736:Horses; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D015601:Injury Severity Score; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019838:Neck Injuries / Q000209:etiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012621:Seasons; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*