• Orlando De Jesus and Juan Vigo-Prieto.
• Section of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences, Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Electronic address: drodejesus@aol.com.
• World Neurosurg. 2024 Aug 1; 188: e207e212e207-e212.

IntroductionHorseback riding can cause severe brain and spinal injuries. This study aimed to identify the spectrum of neurosurgical injuries related to recreational horseback riding.MethodsA retrospective study was performed utilizing the University of Puerto Rico neurosurgery database to identify patients who were consulted to the neurosurgery service between 2018 and 2023 after a horse fall during recreational activities. The outcome upon discharge using the modified Rankin scale (mRS) was documented. Descriptive statistics were used to report frequency and median values.ResultsThe neurosurgery service evaluated and managed 112 patients with a horseback riding fall-related injury during 6 years. Ninety-eight (87.5%) patients were male. The patients' median age was 31.5 (IQR 22-40). There were 89 head injuries (79.5%), 19 spinal injuries (17%), and 4 combined head/spine injuries (3.5%). Forty percent of the patients were admitted to inpatient care with a median length of stay of 7 days (IQR 3-17). Twenty-four patients (21%) required surgery. Upon discharge, 86.6% of the patients had an mRS grade of 0-2, 3.6% had a grade of 3, 1.8% had a grade of 4, and 1.8% had a grade of 5. Seven patients (6%) died (mRS grade 6).ConclusionsMost neurologic injuries involve isolated trauma to the head. Fifteen percent of the riders' falls were caused after the horse was impacted by a motor vehicle. Forty percent of the patients require admission and 21% undergo surgery. Ten percent of the patients had a poor mRS grade of 4- to 6 when discharged.Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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