Musings on Head Injuries

[cushetunk]

I'm not imune to tripping over my 'pons at the end of a long day and I think a head injury is a potentially deadly event that can easily be avoided.

True. But isn't the real risk factor here not that your head is bare but that you are tired and alone? I mean, you could trip and break your leg, go unconscious for any number of reasons, and be just as dead from hypothermia. Or pick your favorite "tired and alone" in the woods possibility.

For most winter hiking, I just have to believe that the margin of increased safety gained by wearing a helmet is insignificant when compared to the total risk of solo winter hiking.

 

[Chip]

For most winter hiking, I just have to believe that the margin of increased safety gained by wearing a helmet is insignificant when compared to the total risk of solo winter hiking.

I thought you were going to say "is insignificant when compared to the power of the force..." BUT...

I hear ya and disagree. I believe most winter accidents are survivable if conscious. If you hit your head on a rock, then you die. The helmet is an extremely easy add-on to help with the odds.

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

There was this thread a few years ago: http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=6327

-Dr. Wu

Here is my contribution to that thread, which would be essentially the same not quite four years later. I still do not wear a helmet or goggles in winter, but probably should, especially on my NHHH bushwhacks this past winter. My favorite memory was HikerDoc just before we left the Garfield Ridge Trail for the thrash to the West Garfield Ridge summit, no pack and no poles, but goggles with hood pulled up over his head, and then his declaration, "Ok, I'm going in." Wish that I had a photo. My reply was, "Ok, I have you covered."

Does Baxter still require helmets above treeline in winter?

I think TCD's excellent reply could point to what may have happened to Natasha (R.I.P.).

May 2005:
"I lost count of the number of times this past winter that I slammed by head into overhead branches and wished that I had been wearing a helmet. But, by the time I got down and back out on the trail again, I had forgotten about the trauma until it happened again, and again. The deep snowpack this past winter was probably in part to blame, as our heads were protruding higher into the trees than usual.

When I began rock and ice climbing many years ago, most of us wore helmets. But, soon very few younger climbers were wearing them, as the helmets were quite heavy, like ski racing helmets. But, as helmets became lighter the past couple of decades, more climbers are wearing them again.

I began wearing a helmet for downhill skiing a few winters ago, and for back-country skiing we do indeed also wear wrist, elbow, and knee pads, as joked about in an earlier reply. Back-country skiers some times look like hockey players.

It is now the law to wear a helmet above treeline in Baxter State Park during the winter, I believe.

But, perhaps the item that I find most important for hiking below treeline during winters such as this past one is a pair of ski goggles, or at least glasses, as those branches stuck into the eyes really hurt. "Ow;" "quit it."

 

[woodsxc]

I guess I should elaborate on my view of helmets. I always wear one while biking. My parents beat that into my head (pun intended) at a young age. If I'm climbing, which I don't do nearly as often as I'd like, I wear a helmet, but not for bouldering. At East Race (manmade whitewater course in South Bend, IN) helmets are required. You can bring your own or use one of theirs, but you can't put in without head protection. No compromises.

Winter is pretty much the same. When I told my parents that I was starting up snowboarding again this year, their first question was about what helmet I was using. The Bowdoin Outing Club policy is that you must wear a helmet if you've got crampons on or are using an ice axe and I have no problem with that. But other than those situations, I don't wear a helmet.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

The Bowdoin Outing Club policy is that you must wear a helmet if you've got crampons on or are using an ice axe and I have no problem with that.

Does that not discourage use of crampons or the ice axe?

Tim

 

[blacknblue]

I own three helmets -- bike, ski, and climbing/mountaineering. I've never considered a helmet for hiking just for tree branches or whatnot. I could see taking an awkward fall on some icy, rocky areas where a helmet would be nice, but I can't imagine really wearing one for the vast majority of hikes around here. Too heavy, too cumbersome, too hard to layer up in cold weather.

I have worn my climbing/mountaineering helmet while 'hiking' out west in areas where rockfall is a legitimate threat. Also, I'll wear a helmet on steep snow climbs, especially in springtime, in places like Tucks or Huntington Ravine.

 

[Stan]

Is it just me, or has anyone else been thinking of the possibility of dying from a head injury in the field?

Not really.

I have thought about the consequences of an accident and how I might deal with various scenarios, either for myself or somone in my party.

Denial offers a lot of comfort.

SOLO and wilderness first aid courses are even better.

This event and the death of a movie actress underscores something else.

You may be able to walk away from an accident but that does not mean the injuries are necessarily over. Internal injuries to the head or to other body parts could manifest themselves hours or days afterwards. How often does an insignificant injury reappear the next morning in the form of serious aches?

In Ms. Richardson's case I suspect that a latent weak spot in the blood vessels of her brain may have begun a small rupture as a result of the accident, only to be exacerbated by time and a flight at reduced air pressure. This is pure speculation on my part but it is consistent with what I know about blood vessels in the brain and about what is a wise response to any accident or symptom.

Do not let bravado, insufficient health insurance or inconvenience keep you from seeking proper medical attention as soon as possible for any trauma that might cause head or internal injuries which may not manifest themselves immediately.

As for wearing a helmet, it depends on the activity and your degree of risk. I don't plan to wear a helmet while hiking in any season but then, I don't plan on anything with a high liklihood of trauma.

I view skiing as a likely cause of trauma. In addition to Richardson, consider the experiences of Sherpa Kroto and Doug Paul ... not to mention a former employee of mine who collided with a tree while skiing recently and lost his life.

 

[weatherman]

I generally give the advice "Use a helmet for anything that makes you go faster than you can run". Which means I should think about using one for skiing. I can't hike faster than I can run, though if there was a risk of something hitting me at speed (rockfall) then sure.

I think we might learn that there was something quirky about Natasha Richardson's fall or something in her head that predisposed her to a problem. Her symptoms started an hour or so after the accident, which says "internal head bleed" to me.... though the mechanism just doesn't seem forceful enough. Really tragic.

Weatherman

 

[Whiteman]

You should see my broken helmet collection

Once I adapted to the notion that a bike helmet was more than sensible, I never looked back. Fortunately this became my routine before my many bicycing crashes, four of which included broken helmets, three of which included mild concussions. So it's not likely I'll remember your name right away, but it will bubble to the top eventually.

The threat of a broken noggin or broken anything else does not keep me from hiking solo, riding my bike fast, skiing at the edge of my limits (which are not very extreme, believe me), exposing myself to falling objects, diving even though I'm a crappy swimmer, or other exciting activities. I just try to approach them sensibly. I've got a few scars, no big deal.

But there's something about that news story that I hope never to be in. It starts, "Fifty-four year old man ...." Sounds so old.

 

[woodsxc]

Does that not discourage use of crampons or the ice axe?

Tim

I don't think so. I don't like wearing a helmet, but the bulk and mild inconvenience of bringing it along is far outweighed by the benefits. An extra half pound and some wasted space in my pack is worth it if it means that I get to climb Washington.

Plus, we don't always follow the rule. When I did Bondcliff, the trip leaders were an assistant director and the head of winter programs. We had helmets on for a little bit of the time but quickly ditched them. In that case though, it was very flat with little ice and we really could have bare booted it (and did so for most of the time).

 

[Fisher Cat]

On March 31, 1987 I took a major spill during a citzens league downhill. The second roll threw me so far I (I was called a "skiing block " during my school and citizens league racing years, a lot of weight in the legs on a very small frame, result - I usually went SAILING at high speeds) came down in the transition zone before a roundhouse, this after a somersault that landed me on my neck and shoulder. I woke up face down on the slope and yelled for a sled, then blacked out. Even the inside sole of my boot looked like someone threw a hand-grenade in it, it was shattered. Ah, my good ol' Atomic Arcs (any Bill Johnson fans out there?)I was wearing a helmet and was semi-concious during the sled ride down. When I got to the inspection room I could even walk and talk. Then things went downhill (sorry for the word usage)from there. I went down for the count. The next skier down, a fellow patrolman named Peter P. hit a tree, broke 3 ribs (one of which turned out, punctured a lung) and seperated his shoulder. They threw us in a Ford Econoline van (no ambulance) and bumped and banged us down to Hanover. I went in and out as I could hear Peter chuckin' it up. I didn't wake up till the next day around 3PM.

Fortunately there was no bleeding in or on the brain but my eggs had certainly been scrambled. I was the proud owner of a Grade III concussion. My right elbow, which had absorbed a tremendous amount of force when I hit the ground took some serious nerve damage and stiil isn't quite the same even today. That's a minor cost to what could have been. Three weeks later Peter P. and I stood atop a mountain together and both agreed that buying 4 cases of beer for the Patrol members and friends who helped us that day was one the greatest expressions of human thanks we could make.

It was a frightening experience and I dread to think how it would have turned if I insisted and said I was fine and, say, tried to get home on my own. Talk-n-Die syndrome. These conditions are real and can happen, but even a helmet can't protect us from everything, but chances are, and I'll play the odds, they'll save your life. I still wear a helmet skiing (though the racing days are LOOOOOONG gone), I would wear one biking, but I don't bike much anyway. I have never given thought to wearing one hiking and can't say as if I ever would.

PS- For the sake of my mother's mental health and anxiety (as I know she reads this now and then) I will admit that I would almost have selected #2-Sometimes, I wonder about the possibility. Love ya mom.

 

[ALGonquin Bob]

The 2 times I've fallen and whacked my head were solo on Macomb after dark in April '04, and solo while descending Marcy in November '07. Luckily, there was no drain bamage...

 

[jniehof]

I wear a brain bucket when doing any outdoor climbing and always when biking. Sometimes I forget the bike helmet, but I realize as soon as I try to look in the mirror.

After the rockfall death on Falling Waters last year, I've considered wearing one when spring hiking on steeper terrain. Hasn't come up yet. If my Colorado trip actually happens this summer, I'll be wearing a helmet on Kelso Ridge but will stow it once I summit Torreys...probably similarly on the Sawtooth.

 

[J.Dub]

TCD's initial reply saved me a whole lotta typing.

I concur, and I wear a helmet any time I'm going faster than walking or at a greater angle than about a Class 3 hike.

There's a similar thread (with a bit more cheekiness, as is their wont) going on currently at RC.com.

 

[giggy]

wear one when climbing or out west on peaks where falling stuff cold put a damper on the day - wear one in baxter in winter above treeline, because its a rule and I like going to baxter and don't want to get on the rangers shitelist.

never wear one when hiking - just don't see the need, but would never mock anyone doing so. to each their own - what makes you feel safe is whats right.

 

[Chip]

I always wear my helmet, but they can't seem to stop me from licking the school bus windows.

I think the image of the Special Ed kids on the bus is what keeps many from considering wearing a helmet. Vanity. When I was a kid we would not be caught dead wearing a helmet biking or boarding and now that's expected, cool even. Several references to the speed of hiking or walking have been made. Falling is faster than walking. Anybody that thinks helmets are too bulky or heavy or don't layer well hasn't spent much time in a helmet. Do what you want.

 

[RoySwkr]

I have whacked my head and other body parts any number of times, it's amazing that I've never got more seriously hurt

I wear a hard hat on the rare times I go caving or use a chain saw, and when my job requires it

On one of the discussions of requiring motorcycle helmets, somebody asked the expert witness why car drivers shouldn't wear them too, and he said, "Don't get me started!". So I have occasionally worn a motorcycle helmet driving in bad weather. That's probably the most dangerous thing most of us do.

 

[J.Dub]

I think the image of the Special Ed kids on the bus is what keeps many from considering wearing a helmet. Vanity.
When I was a kid we would not be caught dead wearing a helmet biking or boarding

Well, Gramps, these days the helmets aren't carved out of stone with horsehair padding inside.

and now that's expected, cool even.

Agree. Both my kids (ages 9 and 11) don't think twice about putting on the melon-protectors when they ride their bikes or skateboards in the driveway. It's "normal" for their generation, as is putting on seatbelts and text-messaging.

I wonder in 20 years if a "do you wear a helmet" poll was done here, the overwhelming response might be, "DUH! Doesn't everybody?"

 

[daxs]

I never thought about wearing a helmet hiking. AWAYS when bike riding. I was hit by a car several years ago when bike commuting. Even with a helmet I ended up with a severe concussion and needed to be medevaced to a trauma center. I live at the jersey shore and every summer I see families out bike riding and noone has a helmet on. It makes me cringe.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I never thought about wearing a helmet hiking. AWAYS when bike riding. I was hit by a car several years ago when bike commuting. Even with a helmet I ended up with a severe concussion and needed to be medevaced to a trauma center. I live at the jersey shore and every summer I see families out bike riding and noone has a helmet on. It makes me cringe.

I tend to give a loud verbal approval to any kid wearing a helmet when I ride by them on my bike wearing my helmet. I think it reinforces the goodness.

Tim