Hospitalizations for cycling injuries in Canada increased by 25% during the pandemic, according to data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
CIHI, a nonprofit that tracks hospitalizations and emergency visits nationwide, reported last week that between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021, the total number of hospitalizations for injuries fell across Canada, but hospitalizations for cycling injuries increased more. more than 1,000.
According to Tanya Khan, CIHI’s Clinical Administrative Database Operations Manager, the trend occurred across all jurisdictions, across age and gender groups. The only exception was Saskatchewan, which did not see an increase in bicycle-related hospitalizations.
“While our data doesn’t capture exactly why this happened, it’s possible that some of the public health measures had an impact,” he told CBC News on Tuesday.
Many indoor leisure activities were closed to limit the spread of COVID-19 in 2020 and Canadians were encouraged to practice social distancing. Bike shops saw strong sales and many cities opened temporary bike lanes during the boom.
“People still wanted to spend time outdoors and may have tried new activities, like cycling, that they may not necessarily have tried in the past, and that may have led to an increase in injuries,” Khan said.
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Bicycle injuries peaked during the pandemic
Adventure-seekers on the back of a bike in Edmonton during COVID also spent more time in hospital. Cycling injuries increased by 25 per cent, as Madeleine Cummings explains.
In Alberta, hospitalizations for cycling injuries increased by 37 percent. The province’s 813 cycling-related hospitalizations represented about 15% of the total across Canada.
The data does not distinguish between patients who are transferred from one facility to another or readmitted, so the figures do not capture the number of people who suffered bicycle injuries, only the number of visits and hospitalizations.
“Face first on the ground”
Brent Busch was one of thousands of Canadians who suffered a cycling injury during the pandemic.
Busch said he started cycling more frequently in 2020 to lose weight, and one morning in July, a motorist hit him as he rode between sidewalks in his north Edmonton neighborhood.
“I saw the vehicle coming, I braced myself for the impact and the boom. I went over the handlebars, fell face down,” he said Tuesday.
Brent Busch fell flat on his face after a car hit his bike in July 2020. His injuries, which sent him to the hospital, were minor. (Submitted by Brent Busch)
Police officers at the scene told him that both he and the driver were at fault for the collision, as he was riding on the sidewalk and the driver failed to check before going through the intersection.
Paramedics took him to Sturgeon Community Hospital in St. Albert, where his thumb was sewn up.
Busch said he’s more careful now. He bought a helmet immediately after leaving the hospital and no longer drives on the sidewalks.
Physiotherapists treat cycling injuries
Giri Srinivasan of InStep Physical Therapy in downtown Edmonton said he noticed an increase in clients coming in with cycling injuries in July 2020.
He said many people bought new or used bikes because they were frustrated with public health measures and wanted to spend time outside.
Giri Srinivasan, a physical therapist who owns InStep Physical Therapy in downtown Edmonton, says he started noticing an increase in cycling injuries in July 2020. (Submitted by Giri Srinivasan)
He said most of his clients with cycling injuries hurt their necks, shoulders or backs, but some strained their thumbs or developed knee problems.
Srinivasan said visits to his clinic for cycling-related injuries remain high. He suspects that beginner cyclists have become more adventurous in the past year and have started experimenting with mountain biking.
“They gained confidence and wanted to do more,” he said.
Steven Cindric, a physical therapist at the Hands Reach Sports and Physiotherapy Clinic in south Edmonton, said driver behavior is likely another contributor to the increase in cycling-related injuries.
“Vehicles aren’t necessarily watching and observing cyclists,” he said.
According to the City of Edmonton, of the 140 cyclists involved in an injury or fatal collision last year, almost 70% were hit by drivers while following the rules and having the right of way.
Cindric speculated that fewer protected bike lanes in Alberta, compared to other provinces, could be one reason Alberta saw a steeper increase in cyclist injuries.
Other sports injuries
CIHI’s Khan said there was also a nationwide increase in ATV and skateboard-related injuries. He said injuries related to other sports, such as hockey, skiing and snowboarding, decreased.
“They were probably the result of public health measures, but we can’t see through the data,” he said.