Wakeboarding Injuries

Abstract

Background Wakeboarding is a popular water sport that has the potential to produce serious injuries. To date, there has been only one article describing an injury caused by wakeboarding. Hypothesis Wakeboarding injuries are common. Study Design Analysis of data obtained from physician and patient questionnaires. Methods Analysis of questionnaire data obtained from 156 orthopaedic surgeons and 86 wakeboarders. Results Of 156 orthopaedic surgeons completing a wakeboarding injuries questionnaire, 49% reported no wakeboarding injuries, 36% (57) reported treating at least 1 wakeboarding injury, and 15% had never heard of wakeboarding. Fifty-seven orthopaedic surgeons reported 122 injuries, of which 47% were either anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears (31%) or shoulder dislocations (15%). In addition, 21% of all the injuries were some type of fracture. Of 86 wakeboarders completing the injuries survey, 77% reported sustaining an injury. There were 82 reported injuries in this group, of which 34% were either ACL tears (17%) or ankle sprains (17%). Conclusions This survey of wakeboarding injuries demonstrates that serious injuries can occur from participation in this sport. The most common injuries reported were ACL tears, shoulder dislocations, and ankle sprains. In addition, 21% of all the injuries were some type of fracture.