Upper limb injuries associated with rock climbing.

Abstract

Four cases of upper limb injuries secondary to rock-climbing or training for rock climbing are presented. All four cases had diagnosis and treatment delayed because of unawareness of the range of injuries seen in high grade rock climbing.

Soft tissue injury in extreme rock climbers.

“…Wrist "sprains" were also commonly reported. DISCUSSION A literature search has revealed only one previous paper on climbing injuries -a collection of four case reports (Bannister and Foster, 1986). As rock climbing becomes increasingly popular and the original dangers from falling are reduced by the quality of modern protection gear, injury problems related to the difficulty of the climbing and to overuse, assume increasing importance.…”

Incidence, mechanism and risk factors for injury in youth rock climbers

“…Injuries sustained in these activities consist largely of trauma resulting from falls or overhead rock fall, injuries from weather (eg, frostbite) and negative altitude effects, with some mention of training-related injuries 2 6. The existing studies involving sport climbers and ‘boulderers’ report high injury rates ranging from 103 injuries/100 participants/year to 137 injuries/100 participants/year, and 4.2 injuries/1000 climbing hours in adult climbers 7–9.…”

The epidemiology of rock-climbing injuries

“…Misdiagnosis and delays in treatment occur due to unfamiliarity with climbing injuries 9 11 12. However, more accurate information regarding the nature and aetiology of climbing injuries has the potential to guide more effective interventions and improve diagnostic assessment and treatment 13.…”