HIDDEN DANGERS AT THE AMUSEMENT PARKA Personal Letter from Drs. Brenda and Erik Slovin... Traveling to a theme park is a common adventure for many families. There are innovative rides, attractions, live shows, and old favorites like the carousel and let’s not forget the roller coasters! Ahh, the roller coasters. Did you know that roller coasters can cause some very serious injuries? Injuries can include: cervical (neck) disc injuries, including herniations and bulges, as well as spinal bone compression fractures in both the neck and lower back. Many times the sudden acceleration forces from a roller coaster or centrifuge ride can result in a whiplash like injury, very similar to the neck injuries seen in low speed car accidents. Those with stronger neck muscles are more capable of enduring the shock and are less likely to suffer these soft tissue whiplash neck injures. Therefore, women and children with weaker neck muscles as well as people that are generally more “floppy” versus stiff postured while in their seat are more likely to be injured during roller coaster and centrifuge rides, and should exercise more caution when wanting to enjoy these types of thrill rides. Overall, the instance of severe injury (such as fractures, internal bleeding or death) from thrill rides is low. Other more subtle injuries to the spinal column however, are much more prevalent. For example, it is extremely common to experience a headache after a fun-filled day at the park, or for your neck or lower back to ache after an exciting ride on the latest roller coaster. While these are not obviously serious injuries, they are indicative of damage to the soft tissue in your neck, which over several years, can manifest into something more severe such as pain, numbness or tingling and even arthritis. ACTION STEPS: To prevent
these types of injuries to you and your family, there are a couple of
preventative things that you can do. Second, evaluate your size and/or the size of your child before going on a specific coaster. If you or your child is smaller or has weak neck muscles, you may want to skip the coaster and the centrifuge and head out towards something that isn’t going to shake you up. Or consider a smaller coaster with fewer drops. Third, wooden coasters may bring back all the nostalgia of being a child, but they wreak havoc on your spine. These old clickety-clackety coasters shake you up better than the best electric martini shaker can. Steel coasters offer much smoother rides to thrill-seekers, keeping the fun and getting rid of some of the negative whiplash consequences. Lastly, just use caution. A day in the park offer a fantastic outing for the entire family and gives us wonderful memories after you’ve all returned home safe and sound.
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