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dldproductions

Full Face Helmet Vs. Swooping

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Hey guys, I'm curious to have your take on this. I was talking with my physioherapist yesterday about the incidence of wearing a fullface helmet for frontal impact injury and she explained to me that chin bars are commonly the cause of cervical fractures in mountain biking, atv and such.

Having seen one skydiver turned quadriplegic after a swoop that went wrong (he was wearing a full face helm) I'm wondering if this matter should be raised around dropzones.. It's sad to say that swooping injury often involves frontal impact.

Anyone health professionals (or not) have an opinion on this?

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most HP canopy pilot i know do not wear Full face lids, a pond entry with a full face would not be fun
You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
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Hey guys, I'm curious to have your take on this. I was talking with my physioherapist yesterday about the incidence of wearing a fullface helmet for frontal impact injury and she explained to me that chin bars are commonly the cause of cervical fractures in mountain biking, atv and such.



What would happen without a full face helmet in those cases?
Would the face/jaw bones absorb the force and spare the neck, thus reducing the overall injury, or would it lead to a worse injury?

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Yes, there are times that jaw and facial bones seem to act as "air bags" protecting the brain and spinal cord in a frontal impact.

It is a good news/bad news sort of deal... good news is that brain and spinal cord are OK, bad news... face and jaw are trashed.

However, having cared for many, many folks with catastrophic brain and/or spinal cord injuries... I would take the jaw and facial injuries any day if it meant keeping the brain and spinal cord intact.
The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

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Would the face/jaw bones absorb the force and spare the neck, thus reducing the overall injury, or would it lead to a worse injury?


Well I've seen someone with 6 bones fractured in the face from hitting the top of a tree and fall down on his face and he now looks fine (no apparent facial scars... as for brain damage, well he sounded fine in his speech but I've seen the man only once since and he actually started jumping again.. ) So if the question is, would I rather have my face or neck broken? I'll go with the face...

Did anyone witness cervical injuries following frontal impact with full face helmets at their local DZ?

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most HP canopy pilot i know do not wear Full face lids, a pond entry with a full face would not be fun


Maybe, but I often see coaches wearing them, or RW jumpers pulling hook turns... And (correct me if i'm wrong) a lot of "gone bad" situations involving speed at landing will result in a knee-then-face landing (more chances of cervical spine injuries)...

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I came off a quad bike once wearing a full face helmet and I reckon the chin protection could have saved me from a spinal injury. I went off head first and landed on the back of my head as the rest of my body flew over the top, the helmet chin got compressed into my chest and absorbed the impact there.
Dunno if that relates at all, just thought I'd share.

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...chin bars are commonly the cause of cervical fractures in mountain biking, atv and such.

Having seen one skydiver turned quadriplegic after a swoop that went wrong (he was wearing a full face helm) I'm wondering if this matter should be raised around dropzones.. It's sad to say that swooping injury often involves frontal impact.

Anyone health professionals (or not) have an opinion on this?



Typical motorcycle helmets have a different "profile" compared to skydiving full face helmets - they don't really stick out so much from the chin compared to a cycle helmet. I wonder if that might make them less susceptible to what you describe.
People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

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Hey guys, I'm curious to have your take on this. I was talking with my physioherapist yesterday about the incidence of wearing a fullface helmet for frontal impact injury and she explained to me that chin bars are commonly the cause of cervical fractures in mountain biking, atv and such.

Having seen one skydiver turned quadriplegic after a swoop that went wrong (he was wearing a full face helm) I'm wondering if this matter should be raised around dropzones.. It's sad to say that swooping injury often involves frontal impact.

Anyone health professionals (or not) have an opinion on this?



Sounds like a RARE set of circumstances that could go either way, full-face or open. I don't think that we need to reassess the use of full-face helmets.
*I am not afraid of dying... I am afraid of missing life.*
----Disclaimer: I don't know shit about skydiving.----

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I believe the usual ways to break your neck are:

Head, forward (Hyper Flexion)
Head, backward (Hyper Extension)
Head, sideways (Lateral Hyper Flexion)
Spinal column compression (Axial loading, due to the effect of vertical force on the helmet)
Head/helmet, backward on the neck (Posterior Hyper Translation)

I don't see how or why a full face helmet, especially the skydiving type would increase the risk to any of these injuries. I am thinking that maybe what you heard was the helmet could give a greater arm to twist your head or something. I don't think that is a typical cause of injury. But what do I know? I am just a pilot.

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For a while I was wearing a downhill mountain biking helmet made by ProTec that was full face. It was a decent helmet, just kind of bulky. Started wearing it when I started to learn freestyle trying to get ready for the PST. The PST dissolved and I quit trying freestyle as hard, so I quit wearing the helmet and went back to an open face helmet.
--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

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