Injured Wrist and Wrist Guard Questions

[S.S.Dad]

Anke,

If you are serious about wrist protection then take a good hard look at a company called Allsport Dynamics. I've been looking at and worn many different models from several manufacturers. None come even close to Allsports function or fit. Many pro teams and action sport pros wear them . You will pay more for them, but what is the cost of a broken or injured wrist. Not to mention downtime and rehab. Take a look at there web site allsportdymaics.com.

Good luck

[leeho730]

Do wrist guards protect against fractures?

Am J Epidemiol. 2005 Jul 15;162(2):149-56. Epub 2005 Jun 22.

• STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine whether wrist guards increase the fracture threshold for wrist and forearm fractures.
  
• RESULTS: Wrist guards were associated with a statistically significant increase in the number of drops, mean drop height, mean kinetic energy, and summed impulse required to cause a fracture. Fractures also tended to be less severe when wrist guards were used.

The effect of wrist guard use on upper-extremity injuries in snowboarders.

Ann Emerg Med. 1997 Jun;29(6):766-9.

• These results provide evidence that use of wrist guards reduces the risk of hand, wrist, and forearm injuries but may increase the risk of elbow, upper arm, and shoulder injuries.

Wrist injuries in guarded versus unguarded first time snowboarders.

Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2003 Apr;(409):91-5.

• Five hundred fifty-one snowboarders wore wrist guards and a control group of more than 1800 snowboarders did not wear wrist guards. Forty wrist injuries were sustained in the control group (2.2%), compared with no injuries (0%) in the snowboarders who wore wrist guards. Importantly, there was no increase in more proximal or distal upper extremity injuries in the group of snowboarders who wore wrist guards.

Terrain park injuries.

West J Emerg Med. 2009 Nov;10(4):257-62.

Patients injured in terrain parks were [up to two times] more likely to sustain an upper extremity injury when compared to patients injured on non-terrain park slopes.

Upper extremity injuries in snowboarding and skiing: a comparative study.

Clin J Sport Med. 2002 Nov;12(6):354-9.

The results of this study indicate that the upper extremity injuries are much more common in snowboarders than skiers. In particular, upper extremity fractures in snowboarders are three times more common than in skiers.

[Buell]

Leeho730, you are not messing around with finding studies on the safety stuff.

Thanks.

[Buell]

The head ski patrol examiner said it was how he fell on the wrist guards and rail that caused the break to be transfered as his arm "folded" over the end of the stiff plastic under his forearm where the wrist guard ended.

I have a hard time believing that the patroler could accurately determine that the wrist guard was the reason that the park rider broke his arm. Just maybe there was a video of the accident that they took the time to watch, but it is incredibly unlikely that a patroler witnessed the accident or ever saw a video of it.

I expect you would need a slow motion video and experience in fields beyond the patroler's to determine that the wrist guard resulted in a broken arm rather than the rail and the impact breaking the arm. Maybe so though.

Four years ago, I was telling the patrolers I had broken my leg, but they were ALL convinced that I had blown my knee instead. I had broken my leg. On hill diagnoses are guesses.

Wrist guards I have seen are designed to flex and the ones I wear, except in some really freak accident, could not break the arm.

[anke]

Just want to thank you all for the great and valuable answers! I've got a lot of homework to do now...

:lol:

[Helvetico]

I've torn the cartilage in one wrist (going 1 mph over an ice-covered road) and broken my left arm so hard my watch's metal wrist band snapped. Doubt anything could have prevented the second incident, but I researched everything available and went with the Flexmeters. Very pleased so far.

Yeah, they ran one hundred bucks or so, but that's nothing compared to the pain in the ass of being out for six weeks.

You can never, ever wear too much safety gear. Ever.

[biggerwrangler]

hmm Wondering If some of these would work for Race gates as well....

Currently suffering tweaked right wrist. To many hits to that area. most hit the arm guard but every once in a while...

I have run a old pair of burtons with a guard built in topside, but they are ripped to shreads

Thanks for all the links, will be doing the research tonight.

[SteveInOregon]

I have close to 1500 days on snow and have never worn a wrist guard.

Never had any serious wrist injury.

I have been teaching for 12 seasons and do not suggest them for students.

The forearm snap is something I have seen.

Think of an Oak tree in a storm falling over, the limbs snap and the trunk bounces; learn to tuck in the arms and relax on impact.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

__ ____ : A mid forearm fracture simple or compound is the lesser of two evils over a Coles or other type of wrist fracture .

I think your just running of slot machine luck.

There is no way to "relax" and do a Judo fall when a 200 + lb bombing slope monkey nails you blind side , or you are charging it hard at freeway speed ice over and slid off into the trees.

I respect your right to wear or not wear guards, or nothing but surf trunks and sun glasses but my kid will wear wrist guards based on "my" experience not another guys.

Respectfully, If you combine your advanced skills ( which can make a person feel invincible if you let it ) , some luck and you have a prescription for a nice debilitating injury.

I've known many guys who have not worn helmets and other protective equipment for years and years they were natural athletes and highly accomplished in their respective sports, then one day "wham" they take a hard one and it's all over.

Some people are not atheltic enough to do a parachute roll, they need all the goodies they can wear to protect them, others like me still like to charge hard and have a high degree of athleticism "but" have a lot of former injuries from over doing it , plus age degenerative conditions and now also need to bubble wrap our sorry butts ( and wrists ) to minimize impacts.

It seams you have the technique of riding down to a professional high grade science but not practical physiology & the differing consequences of exposing your ortho apendeges exposed to sudden deceleration and blunt force trauma.

Ramming your wrist into ice, a tree, another slopers body, your own board lift pole, hard object etc.... at even 5mph to 50 miles mph is gonna break and break it easily.

The wrist does not like to articulate more than about 50 degrees rearward deflection, any more and it starts to tear tendon then fracture , there is no supporting muscle mass around its articulation thus it is highly exposed to angulated and compressive bending & blows.

Anything semi ridged to mildly flexible that can encase the wrist joint will lessen the chance of severe injury.

Wrist guards are not manufactured to make money, and lot of R&D went into them.

Any one in a street fight knows exactly what I mean, fromnailing a guy with a jab to the nose or temple to locking up and gong to the ground and putting a hand out to lessen the fall with a guy locked onto you will snap the wrist.

Boxers know this the most they have found out a long time ago that simply wrapping the wrist will keep it strong so it does not deflect and injure.

Many ice dancers / skaters do not wear them for aesthetic reasons "but" you can ask around or read any ice skaters forum and find a lot of highly accomplished skaters who have healed multiple wrist fractures.

Bla bla bla sorry for the rant I am sold on wrist guards from using them in my other colision oriented sports.

Again to dis to you I just strongly disagree, :)

[Dave ESPI]

Buell, not for confusion, I was the one who had the horror (and insta-stomach churning feeling) of watching the kid do it to his arm/ wrist while I was on the hill. Luckily it was not in a lesson anyone was teaching ( ugh... oh the mountains of paperwork!) but it was just someone riding in the park and I was watching them while sitting off on a side trail next to where the rail feature was. I knew the kid was hurt, but didn't know the extent. The park ranger notified the first aid crew. I just was whitness.

I wish there are some things I never have to see..... especialy when people get hurt snowboarding.:(. Peoples faces and bodies contort abd bend/break in crazy ways.... its just "wrong".

The ski patrol guys are not always correct, but they see far more injuries of this nature and have a fairly good idea of what is what. Considering the patroler who made such assessment based upon the facts and obvious break has over 35 years of experience as a crew chief on an EMS squad and as a 100+ day a year ski patroler.... I'd say he was spot on with what I saw and he had not spoken to me at the time until a half hour after he brought the kid down in the sled and examined him. Its purely physics and this situation was fairly clearcut and dry with where the break was at the end of the wrist guard support structure armband area.... or it was just random chance of it being in that location, but I'd be cudious to hear what the Ortho Dr. would say as opinion on it.

Either way, it just sucks!

Steve, hows that ankle? been to the Dr. yet ?

[NateW]

I use the Dakines mentioned earlier, under my gloves:

http://www.dakine.com/ski/gloves/wristguards/wristguard/

I like them a lot. There's no rigid piece on the top part, which should prevent them from contributing to a fracture further up the arm. Although, my opinion on that issue is basically "if you fall hard enough to break something, you'll break something."

I don't believe these have saved me from any significant wrist injuries yet, however they have saved me from a bunch of palm bruises, particularly on icy days.