CHILDHOOD SLEDDING INJURIES IN 1990-91

Sledding injuries are a common wintertime problem. To better character ize these injuries, three analyses were done: a retrospective chart re view of all injured sledders at St. Louis Children's Hospital (SLCH) i n the winter of 1990-91, a review of Consumer Product Safety Commissio n (CPSC) injury data for 1990, and measurements of sledding speeds. An alyses of the SLCH data and the CPSC data yielded similar results. You nger children incur more head injuries, while older children incur mor e extremity injuries. The SLCH data indicate that most injuries occur close to home when a sledder strikes a fixed object in his path. Veloc ities of 10 to 20 mph may be easily achieved. Injury prevention includ es appropriate selection of sledding site, use of protective clothing, and refraining from sledding at times of highest risk.