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A Test Bed to Examine Helmet Fit and Retention and Biomechanical Measures of Head and Neck Injury in Simulated Impact
Published on: September 21, 2017
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Examining ski area padding for head and neck injury mitigation.
Irving S Scher1, Lenka L Stepan1, Jasper E Shealy1
1Guidance Engineering and Applied Research, Seattle, WA, USA.
Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport
|May 28, 2020
Summary
Ski area padding offers limited head protection for linear impacts but does not prevent severe brain or cervical spine injuries from rotational forces. Helmets did not significantly improve outcomes in testing.
Area of Science:
- Biomechanics
- Sports Safety Engineering
Background:
- Head and cervical spine injuries are significant risks in skiing and snowboarding.
- Evaluating protective gear is crucial for mitigating impact trauma in snowsports.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the effectiveness of ski area padding in reducing head and cervical spine injury risks during headfirst impacts.
- To investigate the influence of padding and helmets on linear and rotational kinematics.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a pendulum impactor system with an instrumented Hybrid-III anthropomorphic testing device (ATD).
- Tested padding on a wooden pole under various conditions, simulating headfirst impacts.
- Analyzed linear and angular kinematics, comparing results with injury assessment reference values. Included snowsport helmet testing.
Main Results:
- Ski area padding reduced linear head acceleration and associated injury likelihoods at the tested impact speed.
- Padding did not significantly decrease injury likelihood from rotational kinematics.
- Neither padding nor helmet addition significantly reduced cervical spine injury risk.
Conclusions:
- Ski area padding provides limited protection against linear head impacts but is ineffective against rotational forces causing severe brain injury.
- Current ski area padding and helmets do not adequately protect against serious cervical spine injuries in headfirst impacts at tested speeds.
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