Winter Sports Medicine Handbook.

Winter Sports Medicine Handbook Moeller JL, Rifat SF, eds. New York, NY 10121-2298, McGraw-Hill, 2004, paperback, 448 pp, illus, ISBN: 0-07-141209-3, $49.

This book was written as a resource for any type of health care professional--including physicians, physical therapists, and athletic trainers--involved with the training and care of winter sports athletes. As the name implies, the book attempts to be a reference guide to a range of ice and snow sports. It provides the history, biomechanics, and physiological demands of cold weather sports, as well as an outline of typical musculoskeletal injuries associated with these sports.

The book is well written and well organized, and it contains 15 chapters. The first 4 chapters are general, and the remaining chapters are dedicated to the specific sports (alpine skiing, snowboarding, freestyle skiing, telemark and cross-country skiing, biathlon, ice hockey, figure and speed skating, sliding sports, and curling).

Chapters 1 and 2 cover cardiac and pulmonary physiology and pathophysiology with regards to cold weather sports. The third chapter reviews specific injuries related to cold weather, such as hypothermia and frostbite, along with diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of these injuries. The fourth chapter deals with doping. It is an interesting chapter covering the history and testing of banned ergogenic substances. In my opinion, this chapter is important for all health care professionals, especially for those who work with young athletes in any sport. It provides important information on side effects and on documented and perceived effects.

Chapters 5 through 15 are dedicated to specific sports. Although they were written by different authors, these chapters, for the most part, are consistent in terms of structure and content. Each chapter reviews the history of the sport along with special concerns. They also review biomechanics and associated musculoskeletal injuries.

In general, the chapters are comprehensive and provide in-depth information. Judging by the credentials of the contributors and the extensive list of references at the end of each chapter, the information provided appears to be up-to-date and accurate.

Personally, I found the history sections to be very interesting because they provided background for the sports, showing how they evolved to their current form. Some chapters provided more in-depth biomechanical and medical information than others. This may be because large amounts of research have not been conducted on some sports. According to the authors, telemark skiing is an example of a sport in which there is a paucity of research.

In my opinion, the parts of the book that discuss biomechanics and equipment should be of special interest to physical therapists who work with winter sports athletes. These discussions can be of great value when designing rehabilitation programs as well as conditioning and prevention programs for these athletes. The parts discussing the diagnosis and treatment of associated musculoskeletal problems are more relevant to physicians and other clinicians, including physical therapists, who are on site with these athletes.

One of the features this book offers is a quick reference guide, which is located at the beginning of the book. It is organized alphabetically by injury, and briefly references the diagnosis, treatment, and the chapter in which it is discussed. As a clinician, I would have liked to see this guide organized by sport, referencing the common or associated injuries in these sports. The appendix presents suggested dosages for corticosteroids and anesthetic injections. It is organized by site and therefore will be of special value to the physician.

In summary, this book provides comprehensive insight to the world of winter sports. It definitely addresses its intended audience of health care professionals who work with winter sport athletes, and it provides interesting information on the different sports. The book should be relevant to any physical therapist who works with these athletes at any level. This book provides relevant, useful insight, whether the physical therapist's focus is the weekend skier, the snowboarding teenager, or the professional athlete.

Daniel Rovny, PT

Kessler Rehabilitation Centers

Riverdale, NJ

Mr Rovny is a Regional Director for NovaCare, Hudson Physical Therapy, and Kessler Rehabilitation Centers clinics in western New Jersey.