Information about project titled 'Wrist protectors, do they protect?'
Wrist protectors, do they protect?
| Details about the project - category | Details about the project - value |
|---|---|
| Project status: | Published |
| Project manager: | Roar Rønning |
| Coworker(s): | Tom Gerner, Irene Rønning |
Description
The risk of injury is 3-4 times higher among snowboarders compared to alpine and Telemark-skiers. 38% of the injuries among snowboarders, registered in the Lillehammer Central Hospital injury register, are fractures of the wrist.
No prospective randomized studies on the benefit of using a wrist protector have been published.
Method: From the 9.th of February to the 9.th of April 1998 a prospective randomized study was carried out in Hafjell Alpine Center, Olympic arena of slalom and giant-slalom during the 1994 Winter Olympics. Snowboarders were at arrival at the arena, after informed consent, included and randomized (variable block randomization) to either the investigation group which used a Smith & Nephew D-ring wrist brace, or to the control group which did not use any form of wrist protection. At the end of the day, both the investigation group and the control group were clinically evaluated. All participants which were considered injured were evaluated by a physician in the arena, or transferred to hospital for further diagnosis and treatment. All wrist injuries were followed up by telephone interviews. Sprain was defined to be pain and reduced range of movement (ROM) with a duration of at least three days. Fractures were verified by radiographs.
Results: 5.028 observations were done. 99,3% in the investigation group and 86,9% in the control group were evaluated. A total of 32 injuries were found in the investigation group, and 52 in the control group. This corresponds to Mean Days Between Injury (MDBI) = 78,8 and 42,0 in the two groups. 8 wrist injuries (three fractures and five distortions) were seen in the investigation group, compared to 29 wrist injuries (two fractures and 27 distortions) in the control group, giving a significant difference between the groups. (Fisher Exact Test, p = 0,007).
Conclusion: Our study gives reason to recommend wrist protectors to the increasing group of snowboarders. The significant difference between the groups was found because of the difference in the number of wrist sprains. The question whether wrist protectors can prevent wrist fractures as well, is not answered by this study. No injuries which could be caused by the wrist protector itself, were observed.
We conducted a prospective, randomized, clinical study of 5029 snowboarders, 2515 in a braced group and 2514 in a control group. The primary endpoint was fracture or sprain of the wrist with loss of range of motion and pain of at least a 3-day duration. Concomitant injuries were also recorded. Eight wrist injuries occurred in the braced group and 29 occurred in the control group. This was a significant difference. Beginners (first 5 days on a snowboard) and snowboarders with rented equipment were more prone to injury than others. No injuries could be related to the use of the wrist brace. We conclude that wrist braces are effective in protecting snowboarders against wrist injury. Beginners are a high-risk group.