Abstract
Objectives
To study the characteristics and nature of injuries relating to horse riding in the local setting and to compare the findings with those reported in the medical literature.
Methods
A prospective survey of patients with horse-related injuries attending the accident and emergency department of a public district hospital in Hong Kong within the year 2002. The data were analysed and compared with previous studies.
Results
Fifty-five patients were collected in the study. The mean age was 32.7 years. Forty-four (80.0%) of them were riders and 11 (20.0%) were non-riders. Thirteen (23.6%) were grooms. Fifteen patients (27.3%) were admitted and seven (46.7%) of those admitted required operations. There was no fatality. Thirty-nine patients (70.9%) suffered from single injury while the rest (29.1%) had multiple injuries. Most injuries (60.0%) were minor but fractures or dislocations occurred in 16 patients (29.1%). Isolated head and facial injuries occurred in 14.5% of patients. Most were simple concussion. Thirteen patients (23.6%) suffered from isolated upper limb injuries, with more than half sustaining fractures or dislocations. Falling from horse (60.0%) was the most frequent mechanism of injury. Among the non-riding patients, 72.7% were kicked or trodden by horse. There was no association between rider's status, previous riding or injury experiences, or the presence of supervision at the time of riding with the rate of admission.
Conclusion
Horse riding and working with horses can be an occupation or recreation with potential dangers. In our study, characteristics of patients, mechanisms and types of injuries were similar to other western studies. However, professional riders and those with more riding experiences were not exempted from severe injuries requiring admission. Moreover, previous injury experiences and the presence of supervision did not help reduce the admission rate either. Perhaps, as suggested by other studies, the quality of horsemanship and supervision appeared to be more important to reduce accidents. Further proper large scale controlled epidemiological studies will definitely help to improve the understanding of horse-related injuries.