Abstract
Objectives
Equestrians have a high risk of concussions per hospital records. However, most concussions
occur in private settings where concussions are not tracked. We determined concussion
incidence by self-report, expressed per 1000 h of exposure, and determined helmet
usage and concussion knowledge.
Design
Descriptive epidemiological study.
Methods
Equestrians were recruited using a snowball method of sampling in which enrolled participants
recruited more equestrians. Participants completed a survey of equestrian experience
and history of concussion, symptoms and provided estimates of hours spent in various
equestrian activities. From these data, incidences of concussions were calculated.
In addition, they answered questions regarding helmet usage and willingness to take
risks when concussed.
Results
210 participants (203 women) reported 27 ± 14 years of equine experience and 728 concussions,
3.47 ± 5.34 per person (0–55). Incidence while riding was 0.19/1000 h which was greater
than the incidence while driving (0.02/1000 h) or handling horses (0.03/1000 h). Riders
were helmeted at the time of injury 85% of the time. While concussion knowledge was
high, most reported willingness to risk permanent injury by continuing to work with
horses while injured.
Conclusions
To our knowledge this is the first study to document incidence of concussions in equestrians:
incidence is higher while riding than during football or rugby training. Helmets were
far more commonly worn at the time of concussion than reported in hospital data, suggesting
that helmets effectively reduce concussions severe enough to warrant urgent medical
care.
Keywords
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Journal of Science and Medicine in SportAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- The demographics of equestrian-related injuries in the United States: injury patterns, orthopedic specific injuries, and avenues for injury prevention.J Trauma. 2008; 65: 447-460https://doi.org/10.1097/TA.0b013e31817dac43
- External loading characteristics of polo ponies and corresponding player heart rate responses in 16-goal polo.J Equine Vet Sci. 2021; 98103368https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2020.103368
- Equestrian trauma: injury patterns vary among age groups.Am Surg. 2014; 80: 396-402
- Functional and structural traumatic brain injury in equestrian sports: a review of the literature.World Neurosurg. 2015; 83: 1098-1113https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wneu.2014.12.030
- Adult sports-related traumatic brain injury in United States trauma centers.Neurosurg Focus. 2016; 40: E4https://doi.org/10.3171/2016.1.FOCUS15613
- [Internet]. Current Trends Injuries Associated with Horseback Riding --United States, 1987 and 1988.https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00001626.htmDate accessed: October 22, 2021
- Accidents in equestrian sports : analysis of injury mechanisms and patterns.Unfallchirurg. 2017; 120: 129-138https://doi.org/10.1007/s00113-015-0074-z
- Is there a gender difference in concussion incidence and outcomes?.Br J Sports Med. 2009; 43: i46-i50https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2009.058172
- Sex-specific differences in the severity of symptoms and recovery rate following sports-related concussion in young athletes.Phys Sportsmed. 2013; 41: 58-63https://doi.org/10.3810/psm.2013.05.2015
- Sex differences in outcome after mild traumatic brain injury.J Neurotrauma. 2010; 27: 527-539https://doi.org/10.1089/neu.2009.1068
- Injuries and overuse injuries in show jumping—a retrospective epidemiological cross-sectional study of show jumpers in Germany.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022; 19: 2305https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19042305
- Research electronic data capture (REDCap)--a metadata-driven methodology and workflow process for providing translational research informatics support.J Biomed Inform. 2009; 42: 377-381https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbi.2008.08.010
- The REDCap consortium: building an international community of software platform partners.J Biomed Inform. 2019; 95103208https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbi.2019.103208
- Concussion knowledge and behaviors in a sample of the dance community.J Dance Med Sci Off Publ Int Assoc Dance Med Sci. 2016; 20: 79-88https://doi.org/10.12678/1089-313X.20.2.79
- Concussion recognition tool 5©.Br J Sports Med. 2017; 51: 870-871https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-097508CRT5
- The concussion recognition tool 5th edition (CRT5): background and rationale.Br J Sports Med. 2017; 51: 870-871https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-097508
- Epidemiology of head injuries focusing on concussions in team contact sports: a systematic review.Sports Med Auckl NZ. 2018; 48: 953-969https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-017-0854-4
- Epidemiology of race day injury in young professional jockeys in Great Britain from 2007 to 2018: a retrospective cohort study.BMJ Open. 2021; 11e044075https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-044075
- Paediatric horse-related trauma.J Paediatr Child Health. 2017; 53: 543-550https://doi.org/10.1111/jpc.13471
- Jockey injuries in the United States.JAMA. 2000; 283: 1326-1328https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.283.10.1326
- Equestrian injury prevention efforts need more attention to novice riders.J Trauma. 2007; 62: 735-739https://doi.org/10.1097/ta.0b013e318031b5d4
- What motivates adolescents? Neural responses to rewards and their influence on adolescents’ risk taking, learning, and cognitive control.Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2016; 70: 135-147https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.06.037
- Helmets, head injury and concussion in sport.Phys Sportsmed. 2015; 43: 236-246https://doi.org/10.1080/00913847.2015.1039922
- Non-fatal animal related injuries to youth occurring on farms in the United States, 1998.Inj Prev J Int Soc Child Adolesc Inj Prev. 2001; 7: 307-311https://doi.org/10.1136/ip.7.4.307
- Concussion history and knowledge base in competitive equestrian athletes.Sports Health. 2014; 6: 136-138https://doi.org/10.1177/1941738113508073
- Prevention of neurologic injuries in equestrian sports.Phys Sportsmed. 1988; 16: 84-95https://doi.org/10.1080/00913847.1988.11709646
- Concussion knowledge, attitudes and behaviour in equestrian athletes.J Sci Med Sport. 2020; 23: 1055-1061https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2020.05.008
- Is injury an occupational hazard for horseracing staff?.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022; 19: 2054https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19042054
McConn-Palfreyman W, Littlewood M, Nesti M. ‘A Lifestyle Ratherthan a Job’:A Review and Recommendations on Mental Health Support Within the British Horse Racing Industry. Liverpool John Moores University and Racing Welfare Accessed November 29, 2022. https://racingwelfare.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/A-lifestyle-rather-than-a-job-FINAL.pdf
- Increased patterns of risky behaviours among helmet wearers in skiing and snowboarding.Accid Anal Prev. 2015; 75: 179-183https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2014.11.024
Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 23, 2022
Accepted:
December 12,
2022
Received in revised form:
December 9,
2022
Received:
September 29,
2022
Footnotes
☆Funding: No funding was received for this study.
☆☆Conflict of Interest: The authors report no conflict of interest.
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Sports Medicine Australia.
