Back Protectors

Snow Sports Back Protectors

Back injuries in skiing and snowboarding can range in severity from sprains, strains, and bruises to catastrophic spinal fractures. Back protectors are generally effective at mitigating back injuries due to direct contact like contusions, but there is little evidence to suggest they can prevent more severe spinal fractures created by kinematic mechanisms present in an impact (for example, compression, hyperflexion, hyperextension, twisting and bending).

There are two main types of commercially available back protectors:

  • Hard Shell - foam covered by a stiff shell

  • Soft Shell - reactive material that stiffens under impact (i.e., non-Newtonian, shear thickening)

Because there is no snow sport specific standards for back protectors, those marketed for use in snow sports use are often tested against existing standards developed for other activities. The risks and environmental factors unique to and inherent in snow sports may not be accounted for in these existing standards. The discrepancy between marketing and testing may sow confusion and lead to a mismatch between consumers’ perception and the actual ability of back protectors to prevent injury in the snow sports setting.

Existing Back Protector Standards for Other Activities

  • EN 13158: 2018 Protective Jackets, Body, & Shoulder Protectors for Horse Riders

  • BETA 2018 Body protectors

  • ASTM F1937-04(2017) Standard Specification for Body Protectors Used in Horse Sports and Horseback Riding

  • ASTM F2681-18 Standard Specification for Body Protectors Used in Equine Racing

  • EN 1621-2:2014 Motorcyclists’ protective clothing against mechanical impact – Part 2 – Motorcyclists back protectors – Requirements and test methods

ISSS Working Group on Back and Spinal Injuries

To determine whether a snow sports specific back protector standard is necessary, the ISSS working group is taking a multifaceted approach, researching topics ranging from epidemiology, impact biomechanics, and materials research. Understanding of what types of spinal injuries are prevalent in snow sports and how they occur in the snow sports arena, as well as other injuries that may occur during an impact to the back, are crucial to comprehending the limitations and capabilities of snow sports back protectors. Building on that knowledge, research on back protector materials and efficacy can be focused to enhance design and discover whether testing methods for existing standards are sufficient or a new snow sports specific standard is warranted.

Chair of ISSS Working Group on Snowsports Back Protectors

·      Dr Nicolas Bailly, Aix Marseille Univ, Univ Gustave Eiffel (Chair)

Associated Publications

Allen, T., Duncan, O., Foster, L., Senior, T., Zampieri, D., Edeh, V. and Alderson, A., 2017. Auxetic foam for snow-sport safety devices. In Snow Sports Trauma and Safety: Conference Proceedings of the International Society for Skiing Safety: 21st Volume (pp. 145-159). Springer International Publishing.

Bigdon, S.F., Gewiess, J., Hoppe, S., Exadaktylos, A.K., Benneker, L.M., Fairhurst, P.G. and Albers, C.E., 2019. Spinal injury in alpine winter sports: a review. Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine, 27, pp.1-11.

Dotti, F., Ferri, A., Moncalero, M. and Colonna, M., 2016. Thermo-physiological comfort of soft-shell back protectors under controlled environmental conditions. Applied ergonomics, 56, pp.144-152.

Duncan, O., Shepherd, T., Moroney, C., Foster, L., Venkatraman, P.D., Winwood, K., Allen, T. and Alderson, A., 2018. Review of auxetic materials for sports applications: Expanding options in comfort and protection. Applied Sciences, 8(6), p.941.

Parisi, M., La Fauci, G., Pugno, N.M. and Colonna, M., 2023. Use of shear thickening fluids in sport protection applications: A review. Frontiers in Materials, 10, p.1285995.

Schmitt, K.U., Liechti, B., Michel, F.I., Stämpfli, R. and Brühwiler, P.A., 2010. Are current back protectors suitable to prevent spinal injury in recreational snowboarders?. British journal of sports medicine, 44(11), pp.822-826.

Signetti, S., Nicotra, M., Colonna, M. and Pugno, N.M., 2019. Modeling and simulation of the impact behavior of soft polymeric-foam-based back protectors for winter sports. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 22, pp.S65-S70.

Wei, W., Evin, M., Bailly, N., Llari, M., Laporte, J.D. and Arnoux, P.J., 2019. Spinal injury analysis for typical snowboarding backward falls. Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports, 29(3), pp.450-459.

Wei, W., Evin, M., Bailly, N. and Arnoux, P.J., 2023. Biomechanical evaluation of Back injuries during typical snowboarding backward falls. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 33(3), pp.224-234.