SHQ

Snowboarding Injuries and Prevention

Snowboarding is an extreme winter sport with a considerable chance of injuries ranging from innocent little slips to high impact crashes. Beginner Snowboarders are the ones who normally get injured even though they attempt less dangerous manoeuvres than advanced Snowboarders. This is because they haven't learned how to maintain a stable stance on the Snowboard yet and are thus more likely to lose balance and fall. In fact, nearly 25% of injuries occur during a snowboarder's first experience and almost half occur during the first season of Snowboarding.

Considering the fact that both of your feet are fixed in non-release Snowboard bindings to a relatively narrow Snowboard, it is logical that "falling" is the leading cause of injury in Snowboarding. Falls are followed by collisions with stationary objects and other snowboarders or skiers. Compared to Skiing, Snowboarding injuries usually involve the upper extremities, neck, back and the ankle. This is because when Snowboarders lose their balance, they can't "step out" a leg in order to recover, as both feet are firmly attached to the board. The instinctive protective reaction in the event of a Snowboard fall is to outstretch a hand to break the landing, thus placing the upper limb and neck at risk of injury. Nevertheless, serious injuries are rare in Snowboarding and generally occur from collision with trees. Wrist, neck, low back and coccyx injuries are by far the most common of all Snowboarding injuries, followed by ankle and knee injuries.

In this section we are going to look at some of the dangers and injuries in Snowboarding.
Wrist injuries are by far the most common Snowboarding injuries. Slipping backwards and landing on your hands is a common occurrence especially for those who are just learning to ride. Hard impacts of those slips can cause sprains or even fractures.

Wrist injuries tend to occur when Snowboarders lose their balance, subsequently falls, and instinctively react by outstretching a hand in order to try and break the fall. As a result, the wrist is the single most common site of injury amongst Snowboarders - an area that is rarely injured in Alpine Skiing.

When you slip back, try not to catch your fall with your hands because by doing so, you will be placing all the impact on your wrists. It would be better to teach yourself to fall on your elbows. As you fall backwards, keep your hands in front of you and point your elbows backwards. Your elbows are able to absorb a much harder impact than your wrists. Better yet, try to keep your arms safely tucked in. It is better to roll out of a fall, distributing impact over a greater portion of the body.

Wrist guards are the best method of injury prevention. Using wrist guards are especially important during your first week of learning to Snowboard. Low back, pelvis and coccyx injuries are common in both beginner and advanced snowboarders. With your feet in the bindings all the force of a fall goes through your low back and pelvis. This may cause a misalignment of the pelvic bones, bulging of the discs and misalignment of the joints of the lower spine. It is recommended to get your spine checked regularly by a chiropractor during the season as these misalignments may not cause symptoms right away but may cause the spine to start to decay.
Crashes with natural objects, such as hard snow surfaces or ice, rocks and trees, or unnatural objects such as rails and boxes in Snow Parks can cause serious head injuries. As a result, helmets are an essential component of any Snowboarders Protective Gear. Regardless of your abilities - whether you'll be performing freestyle tricks or not - it is essential that you wear a Snowboard Helmet at all times. Remember that even a low speed, back slip on the back of your head can already cause serious head and neck injuries.
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Brought to you by:
Dr Alan Corin Chiro-Works Bayside