Zeta Club 40th Year Reunion

Zetans on Piste

How Safe Are We?

• Scotland• IPTSD (injuries per thousand skier days):

3. ie 0.3% risk• NZ ACC 2006 Skiing -> 0.7%

insurance claims. No fatalities• Horse riding, mountain

biking, hiking, surfing -> 60% claims• MDBI (mean days between injury): ACL

injury – 2100 days

• Fatalities

• USA 2008/2009: 0.68 deaths per million skier/snowboarder visits

• 90% deaths caused by collisions

• 60% trees

• 10% another person

• (2% NARSID non-avalanche-related snow immersion death)

Serious injury

• Canada

• 15% serious

• 0.06 severe injuries per 1000 skier days

• 52% head

• 42.9% chest

• 32.4% spine

• 2.6% died

Head Injuries

• 10-20% all injuries• 90% minor• Causes:• collision with person or object• impact with snow surface - beginners,

backwards fall• - terrain parks• lift accidents – swinging T-bars, Pomas or

chairs,

Helmets

• Increasing use: famous events

• Deaths: Sonny Bono, Michael Kennedy 1998, Natasha Richardson 2009

• Helmet-wearing German Politician colliding with non-helmet wearing female who died 2010 sustained brain injury.

• 35-40% skiers in Scotland now wear a helmet

Helmets

• But current helmet standards protect brain adequately up to an impact velocity of 12.2 mph, possibly 17 mph. Most intermediate skiers regularly travel at 24 – 38 mph.

• Pathological opinion of Vermont fatalities is that the degree of trauma overwhelmed the protective capacity of helmets.

Helmets: incidence of head injury in survivors

• MacNab 2005 case control study. Helmets associated with 43% reduced risk of head, face & neck injuries.

• Hagel 2005 case-control study. Helmets associated with 29% reduced risk of head injury.

• Sulheim 2006 case control study 2006. 60% reduction in head injury. Fewer neck injuries.

• Shealy 2008. 35% of those who died were wearing a helmet. No effect on serious head injury.

• Russell 2010 meta-analysis. Odds ratio 0.65, (CI 0.55 – 0.79) adults. Children 0.41, (CI 0.27 – 0.59). Neck injury 0.89 (0.72 -1.09).

Other injuries

• Knee 45% of injuries• Women prone to knee injuries; Men, head &

shoulder • ACL rupture increasing• MCL sprain• Meniscus injury• Skiers’ thumb• A-C joint• Fracture clavicle

• Ski lessons -> 50% lower risk of injury

• 2010-11: impression of an increase in head & spine injuries in Europe – harder pistes due to less snow.

Ski with care within your degree of skill and with well adjusted equipment

Wear a helmet if you like but the chance of benefit is small and uncertain