The effect of a ski and snowboard injury prevention video on safety knowledge in children and adolescents

It is believed youth snow-sports injuries are preventable through adequate safety education. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a ski and snowboard injury prevention video on youth safety knowledge. A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted among grade 2-9 students participating in a ski-snowboard school program. The intervention group watched a new injury prevention video. The control group watched the general ski-area orientation video. Students completed a 15-question ski-snowboard safety test before, immediately after, and one month after viewing. Within-subject difference between the pre- and post-questionnaire scores was calculated. Linear mixed-effects model assessed difference in knowledge change scores. 1034 students (seven intervention; 10 control schools) were enrolled. Pre- to-post-test knowledge increased by an average of 1.91 in the intervention (n = 388) and 0.10 points in the control (n = 646). The difference between the immediate and one-month post-test was 0.17 for the intervention (n = 122) and 0.60 for the control (n = 130). The mean change score for the immediate post-test was greater in the intervention (1.77; 95% CI: 1.52-2.03). The mean change score between the immediate and one-month post-test was lower (-0.55; 95% CI: -1.07 to 0.02) for the intervention compared with the control. The findings showed a ski-snowboard safety video can increase knowledge immediately after viewing within a school-aged population.