Scientific paperEquestrian injuries: incidence, injury patterns, and risk factors for 10 years of major traumatic injuries
Section snippets
Material and Methods
All patients admitted to our institution between January 1, 1995, and July 1, 2005, as a direct result of an equestrian injury, were identified via our trauma registry. The Foothills Medical Centre is an adult tertiary care trauma referral center that is responsible for all major injuries in southern Alberta. This is also the area of the province where equine activities are most common. The trauma registry is a prospective database, updated daily with all aspects of a patient’s status and
Results
During the 10-year study period, 7941 injured adult patients were treated at the Foothills Medical Centre. A total of 151 (2%) patients were admitted with equestrian injuries. Ten (7%) patients died. Of the 141 potential respondents, 78 (55%) completed the survey. No patient refused to complete the questionnaire. We were unable to engage the remaining patients because of outdated contact information.
The average respondent was male (60%) and 47 years of age (range, 20–78 y). These patient
Comments
Although the true frequency of equestrian injuries in Alberta is unclear, as many as 96% of patients are treated for minor injuries without hospitalization [20]. This relatively low admission rate (.49/1000 hours of riding) confirms the benign nature of many of these injuries. The incidence of severe (ISS ≥ 12) equestrian trauma in this study cohort, however, was 2% (151 of 7941) of all patients treated at our center. This is consistent with the less than 2% rate reported in other studies from
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