title: Injuries associated with recreational horse riding and changes over the last 20 years: a review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the incidence and distribution of recreational equestrian injuries seen in the Kent and Sussex region and review the available literature on this subject.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a retrospective case series with historical controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  Kent and Sussex region, England.
  
  
  METHODS
  Injuries related to horses in the recreational setting.
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects were selected from our acute injury database. Notes of all patients presenting with horse riding-related injuries between January and December 2010 were reviewed. Skeletal injuries were confirmed using our Picture Archiving and Communications Systems (PACS) system. Data were tabulated and grouped using Microsoft Excel software. Statistics were calculated using Graph Pad software.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the study period, 155 patients presented with a total of 199 injuries related to horses, accounting for 0.3% of all presentations; 69% were soft tissue injuries. The most commonly affected areas were the extremities (77 patients, 49.7%) followed by injuries to the head (38 patients, 24.5%) and trunk (36 patients, 23.2%). Seventeen patients (11%) were admitted. Patients presenting with head injuries suffered significantly more injuries compared to other groups (1.65 compared to 1.4 injuries, p < 0.0002).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A larger number of persons were riding for a longer period of the year compared to previous studies in the United Kingdom. There was also a shift in the patterns of injury seen in this population over the last two to three decades.
authors.affiliation: Department of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery, Conquest Hospital, The Ridge, Hastings TN37 7RD, UK.
authors.forename: Nemandra
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sandiford
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Buckle
authors.forename: Uthman
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Alao
authors.forename: Jerome
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Davidson
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ritchie