TY - JOUR
PY - 2022//
TI - Emergency service assistance for injuries on Alpine ski slopes: a cross-sectional study
JO - Prehospital and disaster medicine
A1 - Wagner, Moritz
A1 - Pfurtscheller, Simon
A1 - Dammerer, Dietmar
A1 - Nardelli, Paul
A1 - Kaufmann, Gerhard
A1 - Brunner, Alexander
SP - ePub
EP - ePub
VL - ePub
IS - ePub
N2 - OBJECTIVES: Injuries on alpine ski slopes have been described in cohorts of a reasonable sample size, but constant improvements in safety gear, increased use of airborne rescue, and safety measures during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic mandate re-evaluation. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate skiing and snowboarding injuries, effectiveness of airborne rescue, and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on a large sample size.
METHODS: Data on alpine injuries were prospectively collected from the state emergency services dispatch center in the state of Tyrol (Austria). A total of 10,143 patients were identified, with an average age of 33.5 years (SD = 20.36). The ski patrol was involved in 8,606 cases (84.9%) and some patients (n = 1,536; 15.1%) required helicopter rescue.
RESULTS: A total of 10,143 patients were identified from the dataset of the emergency dispatch center. The most frequently injured region was the knee (30.2%), and it was followed by the shoulder (12.9%), the lower leg (9.5%), and the head/skull (9.5%).
CONCLUSION: The present findings indicate that the most frequent site of injuries on alpine slopes is the knee, and life-threatening injuries are rare. Airborne rescue is very time-effective, however clinical studies with patient follow-up should be emphasized to determine the impact of airborne rescue on patient outcome. The present findings indicate that the duration of all rescue operations has been prolonged as a result of the introduction of safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Language: en
LA - en
SN - 1049-023X
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X22001364
ID - ref1
ER -