Data Blog

Winter in Canada provides favourable weather conditions for outdoor sports and recreational activities, including skiing, snowboarding, ice skating and sledding. While there are numerous health benefits resulting from these sports and activities, there are also risks of serious injuries.^reference1-3 These risks highlight the importance of personal safety, such as wearing appropriate clothing and safety equipment, and ensuring your gear is in good condition. For more information on winter safety tips, please visit the following sites:

• Be prepared for winter weather
• Ice safety
• Sports gear safety tips
• Winter outdoor safety
• Skiing and snowboarding safety tips

Overall

Between October 1, 2016 and January 11, 2024 there were 4,214 snowboarding-related injuries reported in the CHIRPP database, representing 535.5 cases per 100,000 CHIRPP records. Of these injuries, the average age among patients was 16.6 years and males represented the largest percentage at 69.5%. Among children, those aged 10 to 14 years represented 49.7% of all cases (Table 1). Over two thirds of those injured (69.6%; n = 2,934) stated that they were wearing safety equipment when the injury occurred.^reference1

Type of injury

Shown below in Table 2 are the types of injuries resulting from the reported snowboarding-related injuries. Representing the majority of all injuries were fractures at 49.4%. Traumatic brain injuries (12.7%) followed this category, among which concussions had the largest number of counts (n = 420). Table 3 provides a breakdown of the body regions where the fractures occurred. Of the 2,161 reported fractures, the upper extremity region represented a sizable percentage at 79.1%. Among fractures in the upper extremity region, those concerning the wrists and forearms had the highest counts. The trunk was the second most common body region where fractures occurred, among which clavicle fractures had the largest counts.

Event circumstances associated with fractures

Table 4 shows the event circumstances associated with the reported fractures. A 30% random sample of all fractures (n = 649) showed that falls represented the highest percentage of cases at 77.5%. The second and third most common circumstances were fractures involving jumps (12.9%) and individuals falling off or hitting a rail (3.7%).

Emergency department outcomes

Table 5 presents a breakdown of the emergency department outcomes of reported snowboarding-related injuries. Of the 4,214 records, the majority of patients required treatments in the emergency departments (67.2%). There were 146 reported hospital admissions, and of these, 69.2% were associated with fractures and 16.4%, with injuries to internal organs.