A Study of Skiing and Snowboarding Injuries

Purpose: To calculate the injury rate of skiers and snowboarders, to document the risk factors affecting injury, and to investigate the characteristics of the cause, kind and region of injury. Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted at 4 major Kangwon - province ski resorts during the 2004 - 2005 winter season with 373 skiers and snowboarders. The statistical SPSS was used to analyze data that included chi-square, fisher's exact test, and multiple logistic regression. The mean mark of the safety rule by separating the skiers and snowboarders was compared between the two groups. Results: The injury and wound experience rates of the snowboarders (46.5%, 34.2% respectively) were higher than those of the skiers (33.2%, 25.5% respectively). The proportion of injury and wound for the skiers was 76.7% and for the snowboarders was 73.6%. The occurrence of injuries was higher among those with ski career of 5 to 9 years (p=0.012), those with a higher level of ski skills (p=0.002), those who used the higher slope (p=0.002) and those who skied 15 to 19 times(p=0.004). Based on the results of logistic regression analysis, the significant risk factors for skiers were career, level, slope and visit number. Leg injuries accounted for 40.9% of total injuries among skiers, which was followed by arm injuries (35.9%) and head injuries (15.4%)(p=0.033). Conclusions: The study therefore emphasizes safety training for individual skiers and overall conditions of ski resorts.