Citation

Beirness DJ, Foss RD, Desmond KJ. Inj. Prev. 2001; 7(1): 51-55.

Affiliation

Traffic Injury Research Foundation, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. dougb@trafficinjuryresearch.com

Copyright

(Copyright © 2001, BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

11289536

PMCID

PMC1730700

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine the extent of protective equipment use (that is, helmets, wrist guards, elbow pads, knee pads) in a representative sample of in-line skaters. SETTING: Fifteen municipalities throughout the province of British Columbia. METHOD: A province-wide observational survey was conducted in the summer of 1999. Skaters were observed at four types of sites (commuter, recreational, neighbourhood, general community) in 15 municipalities to provide a representative sample of in-line skaters. RESULTS: The observed use of protective equipment by the 877 in-line skaters was relatively low: wrist guards 25%, helmets 13%, elbow pads 14%, and knee pads 10%. CONCLUSION: Despite the availability of relatively inexpensive protective equipment, few in-line skaters take advantage of the opportunity to protect themselves from injury. Policies and programs that serve to increase the use of protective equipment by in-line skaters are needed to help reduce the frequency of skating related injuries.