Pediatric snow sport injuries differ by age
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Read the article on jpedsurg.org ↗Article · Jul 2020 · 1 min read
In brief
In brief
This cross-sectional study of 745 pediatric snow sport admissions reveals age-dependent injury patterns: younger children predominantly sustain skull and facial fractures, while older children experience more abdominal injuries. The findings support continued helmet legislation and highlight the need for age-specific injury prevention strategies in pediatric snow sports.
Written by the GCMD Library team from the article.
Abstract
Background
Unintentional injury is the leading cause of death among pediatric patients. There were 13,436 injuries related to snow sports in those younger than 15 in 2015, with 4.8% requiring admission. These sports are high-risk given the potential for injury even when using protective equipment. We hypothesized that snow sport injury patterns would differ based on patient age.
Methods
A cross-sectional analysis of the 2009 and 2012 Kids' Inpatient Database was performed.
Cases of injuries were identified and analyzed using ICD-9 codes. National estimates were obtained using case weighting. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess for confounders.
Results
Within 745 admissions, there was a statistically significant decrease in skull/facial fractures with increasing age and a statistically significant increase in abdominal injuries with increasing age. Children in early and middle childhood were at increased odds of being hospitalized with skull/facial fractures, while older children were more likely hospitalized with abdominal injuries.
Conclusions
Within the pediatric snow sport population, younger children are more likely to experience head injuries, while older children are more likely to experience abdominal injuries.
Further research is needed to determine the origin of this difference, and continued legislation on helmets is also necessary in reducing intracranial injuries.
Level of Evidence
III