Sex- and Sports-Specific Epidemiology of Traumatic Lumbar Spine Injuries Sustained During Sporting Activities: Male Snowboarders and Female Horseback Riders at Greatest Risk

PURPOSE: To generate national estimates of sports-related traumatic lumbar spine injury incidence rates using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database and determine any sports- and sex-specific epidemiologic patterns of these traumatic injuries. METHODS: Data regarding traumatic lumbar spine injuries sustained through sporting activities from 2009 to 2018 were extracted from the NEISS, a database generating nationwide estimates through patient information collected during emergency department visits from 100 NEISS hospitals across the United States. The estimated number of injuries was calculated using weights assigned by the NEISS database depending on the geographic location of the injury. RESULTS: A total of 497 traumatic lumbar spine injuries were identified over the course of 10 years, suggesting 19,208 estimated injuries. The estimated average injury rate was 6.1 injuries per million persons per year. When analyzed by sex, the incidence rate of traumatic lumbar spine injury was 3.6 injuries per million persons per year for male patients and 2.5 injuries per million persons per year for female patients (P = .663). In male patients, 47% of the injuries occurred in individuals aged between 10 and 29 years, whereas injuries in female patients were more equally distributed across different age groups. Horseback riding (27%), skiing (5%), and roller skating (4%) were the leading causes of traumatic lumbar injuries in female patients. In male patients, most injuries were experienced as a result of snowboarding (13%), weightlifting (10%), and football (6%). CONCLUSIONS: From 2009 to 2018, the estimated incidence of sports-associated traumatic lumbar spine injuries was approximately 6.1 injuries per million persons per year. Male patients experienced a greater number of traumatic lumbar injuries (3.60) than female patients (2.46), with a relative incidence rate of 1.46. The most common source of injury was snowboarding in male patients and horseback riding in female patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, retrospective comparative study.