Introduction:
Although mountain biking is an inherently dangerous activity, participation in the sport
is steadily rising. To date, there are very few publications on mountain biking injuries.
Further investigation of mountain biking injuries can improve medical care and lead to
the development of safety initiatives.
Purpose:
The aim of this study was to describe injury patterns among recreational mountain
bikers in the United States.
Methods:
Mountain biking injury data between the years 1996-2016 were gathered from the
National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). Any injury sustained while
mountain biking that resulted in an emergency department visit to one of the 96 NEISS
participating facilities was included in this study. The NEISS database is designed to
represent a probability sampling of emergency departments nationwide. Data analysis
was performed using descriptive statistics, a χ2 test, and a logistic regression model.
Results:
A total of 2,621 mountain biking injury cases were identified in the NEISS database
in the past 11 years. Fracture was the leading diagnosis (26.86%), followed by
contusion/abrasion (19.11%), strain/sprain (14.88%), laceration (14.42%), internal
injury (6.87%), dislocation (3.97%), and concussion (3.93%). The most commonly
injured body part was the shoulder (17.44%), followed by head (11.10%), upper trunk
(10.07%), and knee (6.64%). Males had a significantly higher proportion of shoulder
injuries than did females (20.3% of males vs. 8.7% of females, Rao-Scott χ2 = 30.66,
p < 0.001). On the other hand, a significantly higher proportion of females than males
sustained elbow injuries (4.7% of males vs. 11.0% of females, Rao-Scott χ2 =25.46, p
< 0.001) and wrist injuries (4.8% of males vs. 8.5% of females, Rao-Scott χ2 = 9.55, p
< 0.011). The logistic regression model showed that these results held true even after
adjusting for age.
Conclusion:
The results of this study suggest mountain biking injuries are commonly seen in
emergency departments, and injuries are often severe. The shoulder is the most
commonly injured anatomic location, with different injury patterns seen among males
and females. Further research is needed to determine specific mechanisms of injury
that might inform injury prevention strategies.
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