In this 32nd volume of Surfing Medicine we take a glimpse at the future and respect the past. Surfing injuries at the Pipeline Masters is an analysis of data collated by surf doc Leland Dao, DO, who has long been that contest’s medical director. Arguably the most prestigious event on the WSL Championship Tour, the best surfers in the world give it their all at one of the most dangerous tube waves on the planet. Cutting edge surfers riding cutting-edge wave. As might be expected, injury rates are relatively high and severe injuries are not uncommon.
In respecting the past, we honor Big Wave Tour medical director Terry Farrell, DO who despite a healthy lifestyle, passed away unexpectedly while mountain biking near his home in Maine. Carpe diem– Terry certainly did. We also look back at classic letter from a 1989 “Ask the Surf Docs” column of Surfermagazine written during the nascent phase of surf medicine. The letter and its response are both insightful and humorous and, in many ways, capture the spirit of our specialty.
Lastly, we present a couple of unique and challenging cases both of which involve leg wounds complicated by foreign bodies. Take a close look at the plain films in “Images in Surfing Medicine” and test your surf-doc IQ. Both of these cases were written up by non-surfing physicians who came across our journal via the wonders of the world-wide web. As a reminder, we welcome unsolicited submissions from our readership in the categories of original research, brief reports, case presentations, current concepts, images in surfing medicine, and literature reviews.
With much Aloha,
Andrew Nathanson, MD, FACEP