Skate blade neck lacerations: a survey and case follow-up.

OBJECTIVE:To learn about neck lacerations caused by skate blades in hockey. DESIGN:A retrospective Web-based survey and follow-up of registered USA Hockey players. SETTING:Three hundred twenty-eight thousand eight hundred twenty-one of 457 038 registered USA Hockey players with a current e-mail address were contacted and invited to participate in the survey. PARTICIPANTS:Of 26 589 players (5.8% of all USA registered players) who responded to the survey, 247 were excluded due to incomplete data. Of 26 342 surveys analyzed, 23 199 respondents were men (88%), 3015 women (11.4%), and 128 (0.5%) did not designate gender. INTERVENTION:An original survey instrument was developed, formatted, and linked to a Mayo Clinic Web site. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:Neck lacerations from a skate blade, including mechanism, severity, treatment required, and the type of neck protector worn. RESULTS:Of the 26 342 respondents, 11 935 (45.4%) currently wear neck protection and 485 (1.8%) have sustained a neck laceration. When the laceration occurred, 132 of the players (27%) were wearing neck protection. Interviews with 33 injured players established that lacerations were superficial: 20 (61%) required bandaging only, 11 were sutured, and 2 were glued. CONCLUSION:Based on this survey, the currently available neck laceration protectors do not eliminate the risk of a neck laceration from a skate blade.