Are Full-Face Shields Making Ice Hockey a More Dangerous Sport?
Dec. 21, 1999 (Atlanta) — In the fast, aggressive sport of ice hockey, the number of high-impact collisions has led many colleges to make full-face masks mandatory. However, the nearly simultaneous increase in concussions and neck injuries has sparked a debate. Are the masks creating a ‘gladiator mentality’ that puts athletes at risk? In a study published in this week’s Journal of the American Medical Association, a group of sports medicine specialists tracked several hundred players’ injuries over one season and found that full-face shields have not increased the risk of neck injuries. In fact, they had the added benefit of significantly reducing the risk of facial and dental injuries. There was no evidence of ‘gladiator mentality,’ study author Willem H. Meeuwisse, MD, PhD, of the University of Calgary Sport Medicine Centre, tells WebMD in an interview. “We looked at whether overall injury rates were different and they were not. We saw the same amount of aggressive behavior and othe
