[Shoulder and arm injuries in alpine ski racing. A survey on the frequency of these injuries with athletes of the Swiss Ski cadres and the regional cadres].

The aim of this work was to examine the frequency and pattern of injuries of the upper extremity among Swiss Ski athletes and among regional team athletes. The injury pattern regarding shoulder and arm injuries in alpine skiers in Switzerland correlates with the previous literature. The shoulder joint is most frequently injured, followed by injuries of the fingers, particularly the thumb. Regarding injury frequency no difference between ladies and men was seen. On the other hand, an increased injury rate could be seen in regional team drivers. Most injuries happened for both genders and in all teams in the training. While in men all injury patterns (contusions, tendon injuries, luxations, fractures) occur, fractures are the dominating injury in ladies.