Effects of modern ski equipment on the overall injury rate and the pattern of injury location in Alpine skiing.
OBJECTIVE
To identify whether the introduction of carving skis and related equipment has altered the overall injury rate and/or the pattern of injury location.


METHODS
Comparative case series.


METHODS
In the winter season of 1997-98, when carving skis began to appear on the ski market, all injured skiers requiring evacuation or medical treatment in 70 Austrian ski areas were recorded. Five years later, when most skiers were using carving skis, ski injury data were collected in a representative sample consisting of 5 ski areas from the first study.


METHODS
Data collection on injured skiers included subject demographics, weather and snow conditions, mechanism of the skiing accident, the type of ski used, injury location, and in the second study, additionally the date of the last ski binding adjustment.


METHODS
Frequency of injured body parts.


RESULTS
In 1997-98, 1.43 injuries per 1000 skier days were calculated. Out of 17,914 injured alpine skiers, 29.5% of the injured men and 53.0% of the injured women suffered knee injuries. Five years later with the introduction of carving skis, the overall injury rate decreased by 9% but the gender-specific percentages of knee injuries did not change. Female carving skiers not using newly adjusted bindings had a higher risk of knee injury than those with newly adjusted bindings.


CONCLUSIONS
The maintenance of adequate binding adjustment is especially important for the prevention of knee injuries in female carving skiers.
Burtscher
Martin
M
Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria. martin.burtscher@uibk.ac.at
Gatterer
Hannes
H
Flatz
Markus
M
Sommersacher
Renate
R
Woldrich
Thomas
T
Ruedl
Gerhard
G
Hotter
Barbara
B
Lee
Audrey
A
Nachbauer
Werner
W
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007718:Knee Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D012865:Skiing / Q000293:injuries*; D019876:Sports Equipment / Q000009:adverse effects