Water recreation-related spinal injuries: Risk factors in natural bodies of water

Diving-Related Injuries in Children <20 Years Old Treated in Emergency Departments in the United States: 1990–2006

“…7,14,18 An expected seasonal variation in diving-related injury was found, with the vast majority of injuries occurring during the summer months, which correspond with summer vacation and a well-recognized peak in recreational aquatic sports participation. 8,9,14,20,22,38 The nearly two thirds of diving-re- This contrasts with most previous published literature asserting that diving injuries occur predominately among older teenagers and young adults who suffer either an acute injury from a recreational dive into water of an unknown depth 3, 8,[11][12][13][14]17,18,22 or a chronic injury from the repetitive forces experienced by a competitive diver during the many hours spent training. 5,7,25,26,28 A total of 90% of diving-related injuries over the 17-year study period occurred in swimming pools.…”

“…Thus, older, male divers may be at higher risk for traumatic head and/or neck injuries, a finding consistent with previous studies. [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] Children Յ4 years of age had higher odds of injury to the face, whereas those aged 10 to 19 had higher odds of an injury to the extremities. Children Ͻ10 years old had higher odds of a laceration, whereas those 10 to 19 years old had increased odds of fractures.…”

“…Because they are such devastating, costly injuries and occur among adolescent and young adult boys, most previous studies have focused on spinal cord lesions and largely discounted other types of injuries (and age groups) involved in recreational diving settings. [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] In contrast, studies that have examined competitive diving have cited the predominance of joint injuries to the upper extremities that are commonly associated with both chronic stress and isolated injurious events, particularly on entry to the water. 5,24-28 Injuries involving the head, neck, and back also occur during competitive diving and range from chronic lumbar pain to rare, but severe, spinal cord damage, paralysis, and death.…”

Part 4: Adult Basic Life Support

“…Only victims with obvious clinical signs of injury or alcohol intoxication or a history of diving, waterslide use, or trauma should be treated as a "potential spinal cord injury," with stabilization and possible immobilization of the cervical and thoracic spine. [225][226][227][228][229][230][231] …”

Jumping to (fatal) conclusions? An analysis of video film on a social networking web site of recreational jumping from height into water

“…Risk factors contributing to recreational diving injury, defined as the headfirst entry into water (Blanksby, Wearne, Elliott, & Blitvich, 1997), and associated spinal cord injuries have been well reported (for example, Blitvich, Mc Elroy, Blanksby, & Douglas, 1999;Branche, Sniezek, Sattin, & Mirkin, 1991;DeVivo & Sekar, 1997;Herman & Sonntag, 1991). Death from drowning or injury as a consequence of jumping feet first into the water from height has been the focus of limited research.…”