title: [Waveboard-related injuries. Greater protection is advised].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Waveboarding, a type of skateboarding, is a new craze among children. The aim of this study is to describe how many children visit the emergency department as a consequence of waveboarding and the types of injury they have.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective, descriptive.
  
  
  METHODS
  All records of children aged 5 to 15 years who had visited the emergency department of the Medical Center Alkmaar in the period March to May 2010 were examined. If a case of waveboard-related injury was found then the type of injury was noted. For all of the injuries a phone call was made to try to find out if protective gear had been worn.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 1418 records from 2010 were investigated. In 132 cases, a waveboard-related injury was found. Contusion was found in 31% of cases and a fracture in 64% of cases. The 2 most frequently occurring sites of injury were the forearm and wrist (53%) and the elbow (14%). In 3% of the waveboard-related injuries the child concerned had worn any protective gear.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Children who visited the emergency department due to waveboard-related injuries mainly had injuries to the wrists, forearm and elbow. Only 3% of the children wore protective gear when waveboarding. As effective protection against accident-related injuries exists for skaters, the wearing of protective gear during waveboarding can be expected to lead to a reduced number of injuries.
authors.affiliation: Medisch Centrum Alkmaar, Alkmaar. seevandijke@hotmail.com
authors.forename: José H M
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: van Dijke
authors.forename: Ditmar
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schakenraad
authors.forename: Piet
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boersen
authors.forename: J G H Han
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: van den Brand
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001134:Arm Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011482:Protective Devices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012861:Skating / Q000293:injuries*; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D014954:Wrist Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology