Common Snowboarding Injuries

Increasingly popular as a sport, you may have been tempted? Want to know what the common snowboarding injuries are before you commit to a week on the slopes? Unlike skiing, injuries tend to be focused more on the upper limbs and the head!

More Dangerous than Skiing?

Overall, boarding carries a higher risk of injury than alpine skiing, but it is still a relatively safe sport. Data suggest a boarder is likely to suffer an injury once every 250 days they spend snowboarding - as the average boarder only spends about 12 days per season on the slopes.

So in short, you'll suffer an injury once every 19 years on average!

Breaking Your Wrist

So how do you reduce your risk of injury? As by far the most common injury is to the wrist, let's look there first. Many injuries to the wrist involve fractures, which can be complicated in this area - this will certainly end your season.

Most of these occur as a result of a fall onto an outstretched hand - it is estimated that up to 100,000 snowboarders suffer this injury each year worldwide, with beginners particularly at risk.

Avoiding this is simple - wear wrist protection. These can either be a pair of standalone wrist guards, or integrated into a glove/guard system. There is overwhelming evidence to support the effectiveness of wrist guards in reducing the incidence of wrist injuries, so not wearing them is simply foolish.

Lower Limbs

Lower limb injuries are usually the result of a collision with another object (another boarder/skier or a tree), or from a bad landing.

The combination of compression and inversion forces applied to the joint when landing badly can lead to a simple ankle sprain, or a more serious and specific condition - a fracture of the lateral process of the talus (FLPT) bone. This injury was rarely seen by doctors prior to snowboarding coming along, and as a result has earned the name "Snowboarder's ankle".

Injuries to the ankle can be directly affected by type of boot you wear. While hard shell boots protect the ankle joint, soft boots, which are often favoured by beginners, do not provide the necessary protection.

Head Injuries

Finally, it is worth considering head injuries. These are usually the result of a fall - beginners in particular tend to fall backwards and hit the back of their head on the snow. Again, the answer is simple - wear a helmet. Of course, many people think that helmets are very uncool - but so is brain damage.

If you are choosing a helmet, look for one that meets either the European standard EN1077, or the more demanding US standards (Snell RS 98 or ASTM 2040).

Reduce the Risks You Take

The other factor that affects your chances of injury is experience. The highest risk group are beginner snowboarders, with those on their first day at highest risk. The simple answer is to wear the right protective equipment (wrist guards, boots, helmet) and take some lessons.

Learning how to board from a professional instructor will dramatically increase the speed at which you learn, and reduce your risk of injury.

By Will Smith