Management of Surfing Injuries: A Plastic Surgeon's Viewpoint

In brief: Physicians of all specialties are likely to treat surfing injuries as the sport increases in popularity and is done in nontraditional areas-such as in commercial aquatic parks. Articles in the medical literature suggest that head lacerations and nose fractures are the most common injuries; these usually occur when the surfboard strikes the surfer. This finding was supported in a survey of 55 plastic surgeons in San Diego County, who reported the number and kinds of surfing injuries they had treated over the past ten years. The survey results indicated that lacerations may be deeper than expected from their surface appearance, and that surfboard fragments are often driven into the wound if the board breaks. The author describes the techniques used to irrigate, debride, and close lacerations caused by surfboards.