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Sledding injuries contribute significantly to winter hospitalization in children

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Sledding accidents are responsible for a large number of winter activity-related hospitalizations in pediatric trauma centers, with more than one-third of those children admitted for significant head injuries, according to a recent study conducted at the University of Michigan.

“We’ve seen a large increase in severe injuries resulting from sledding over the past year,” Richard Herman, MD, FAAP, stated in an American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) press release. He presented the study at the 2011 National Conference and Exhibition in Boston.

Herman and colleagues studied 52 children (34 boys, 18 girls; average age 10 years) admitted to a pediatric trauma center for sledding injuries from 2003 to 2011. They analyzed Injury Severity Scores (ISS), length of hospital stay, length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay, status at discharge and demographic data for those with sledding injuries, comparing them to all other trauma-related hospitalizations, according to the study abstract.

Sledding accidents where the sled hit a tree caused injuries in 33 patients (63.5%). Twenty children (37%) suffered significant head trauma with an average ISS of 13.21; 70% of which were admitted to the ICU for their injuries, according to the release and abstract.

Among the head injuries were six epidural, three subarachnoid and two subdural injuries. Three injuries were intraparenchymal. Researchers noted that six additional patients with skull fractures lost consciousness but had no indication of intracranial bleeding on CT scans.

Three children suffered a permanent disability following their accidents, which included cognitive impairment. Two others required long-term hospitalized rehabilitation. Four of the 32 patients without head injuries also required ICU admission, based on the results. In addition to head injuries, 17 fractures, 10 solid organ injuries, three vertebral fractures and one chest trauma comprised the rest of the group’s injuries. Nine patients required surgery to treat their orthopedic injuries and eight patients were casted and discharged, according to the release.

There is need for greater public awareness of the importance of sledding in locations away from trees and wearing head protection while sledding, Herman noted in the AAP release.

Reference:

• Herman R, Hirschl RB, Ehrlich PF. Raising the awareness of sledding injuries. Paper #14677. Presented at the 2011 American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition. Oct. 15-18. Boston.

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