Epidemiology of ocean sports-related injuries in Hawaii: 'Akahele O Ke Kai'.

Before attempting to prevent ocean activity injuries, as well as to improve treatment strategies, more information is needed regarding the numbers of injuries that are geographic and activity specific and the identification of persons at risk for such injury. Data on 276 injuries that occurred during ocean sports activities on the islands of Oahu and Hawaii over a 10-month period are presented. The injuries were mainly related to swimming and board-surfing, although serious injuries were found for almost all types of sports activities. The majority of those injured were young adult men who were local residents. Over 10% of the injuries required hospitalization, including 4 fatalities due to drowning and 5 spinal cord injuries due to trauma or to SCUBA-related, decompression incidents. Our study identifies the need for determining an estimate of the number of persons engaging in ocean sports, establishes the need for a single reporting system for injuries, determines potential risk factors, and suggests targets for prevention.