Injuries to the head and face sustained while surfboard riding

Dimmick, Simon J; Sheehan, Patrick V; Gillett, Mark; Anderson, Suzanne E

doi:10.5694/mja13.10006

Topics

Emergency medicine

Environment and public health

Diagnostic techniques and procedures

Surgical procedures, operative

To the Editor: Surfboard riding is an iconic pastime in Australia. Injuries to the head and face constitute a considerable proportion of surfing injuries;1-5 26% of acute surfing injuries are to the head and face, and these make up 42% of emergency department presentations by surfers.3

1 Department of Radiology, Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, NSW.
2 School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Sydney, NSW.
3 Emergency Department, Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney, NSW.

Correspondence: sdimmick@gmp.usyd.edu.au

Acknowledgements:

We thank Cameron Sutton (radiographer, Royal North Shore Hospital) for providing the surfboard photographs. This study was funded by a grant from the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists.

Competing interests:

No relevant disclosures.

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5. Lowdon BJ, Pateman NA, Pitman AJ. Surfboard-riding injuries. Med J Aust 1983; 2: 613-616.

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