The Dixie Sun

Issue date: 2/3/10 Section: Lifestyles

Media Credit: Levi Arnone From left, Josh Seifert, a freshman business major from West Jordan; Shane Sherer, a freshman business major from Hurricane; and?Balin Cruz, a sophomore criminal justice major from Rose Park, enjoy a short ride. Few St. George sports enthusiasts wear helmets consistently despite the fact they save lives.

Head injuries are the most common injuries from bicycles, skateboards, long boards and rollerblading according to the Division of Highway Safety.

Bicycling is a common outdoor sport that involves accidents. According to information from the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute, http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm, on average, 90 bicyclists are killed in accidents with motor vehicles. Head injuries accounted for more than 60 percent of bicycle-related deaths.

Bicycling is not the only sport that can cause injury to the head. Snowboarding and skiing are two other sports that can be problematic without a helmet.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 14 percent of all skiing and snowboarding injuries from accidents are head injuries.

Another activity that leads to accidents is motorcycling.

According to the Utah Department of Health, helmet use among fatally injured motorcyclists is below 50 percent. Also, head injury is the leading cause of death in motorcycle crashes.

Helmets are the smart choice, yet head traumas are among the list of common accidents that are seen in the emergency room.

Brett Christiansen, doctor of intensive medicine at Dixie Regional Medical Center, 1380 E. Medical Center Drive, has seen a lot of accidents involving head trauma. While working in the emergency room, he sees victims coming in from bicycling, skateboarding, snowboarding and motorcycle accidents.

Christiansen said: "There is a significant difference between patients wearing helmets and patients without. Usually you don't see them coming in the emergency room if they were wearing helmets."

Christiansen has seen many lives saved by wearing helmets.

"Many times helmets have saved lives, while on the reverse patients with head trauma are usually life flighted for more intensive care," Christiansen said.

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