The reality of risk
Snowboarding is definitely one of the most enjoyable and exciting winter sports. But, like any sport, it has its inherent risks that need to be managed and avoided. International medical research scientists agree that wrist injury due to hyperextension (extreme bending back of wrist) is the number one snowboard injury worldwide. This type of injury comes from the instinctive reaction to break ones fall with an outstretched hand, thereby placing the wrist under considerable load and at risk of hyperextension.
25% of all snowboard injuries affect the wrist joint; it is the most common area on the body to be injured. 70% of all wrist injuries are fractures, which can take months to heal and may be quite expensive to treat completely. Previous studies in Japan have shown that half of all snowboard bone fracture injuries were wrist fractures.
Worldwide, snowboarders report nearly 100,000 fractured wrists each year. Due to anatomical differences in the joint structure, women fracture their wrist nearly twice as much as men. Furthermore, teenagers tend to show a much higher incidence of fracture than adults.
