As snowboarding's popularity increases, so do injuries
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By Christy Feig and Dr. Sanjay Gupta CNN Medical Unit
LIBERTY MOUNTAIN, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- The U.S. domination of the Olympic medals in the 2002 Winter Games is likely to fuel snowboarding's increasing popularity. But along with popularity, injuries from the sport are also on the rise.
Experts say because both knees are locked in the same direction, snowboarders are less likely than skiers to have knee injuries. Instead it's the upper body that takes the brunt, most often, the wrists.
"When people are learning how to snowboard for the first time, it's common where a person would catch the lower edge of their board and fall down and put their arms out to arrest their fall," said Lonny Whitcomb of Liberty Mountain Resort in Carroll Valley, Pennsylvania. "We see a lot of wrist sprains and minor arm injuries."
But surprisingly, wrist guards are not always part of the snazzy gear that come with the sport.
Rob Kiger, a snowboarding instructor at Liberty Mountain Resort, said that except for very small children, wrist guards can be a liability because it can transfer the energy further into your body.
"So rather than it just hurting your wrist which heals quite quickly the energy goes into your body and can rupture your spleen," Kiger said.
But several studies seem to disagree, including a recent study in the American Journal of Sports Medicine which looked at 5,000 snowboarders over a period of three months in which half of the participants wore wrist guards.
Among those who wore the guards, there were only eight injuries compared to 29 in those who didn't.
Beside wrist injuries, dislocated shoulders are another common injury to snowboarders.
If you want to attempt snowboarding, you can reduce your risk of injury with a few precautions.
Before hitting the slopes, take a lesson first. Once you're on your own, start with an easy slope that will limit your speed. Wear the proper safety gear will also limit the risk of injury. A helmet is likely to be at the top of most doctor's lists of essential safety equipment.
"When you learn to snowboard, you're either going to fall straight backward or straight forward, so if you're falling straight backward you want to be able to protect your head," said Deanna Painter, a snowboarder at Liberty Mountain.
However, you may find the best way to avoid injury is to stick to being a spectator instead of a participant.
