Adventure and extreme sports are increasing in popularity and it is not surprising that commercial adventure tourism and the accompanying life style and fashion, have become increasingly important to world economy. These unique sports involve not only major physical endurance and mental challenges but interaction and bonding with nature. They also tend to attract and excite audiences, both at the event and in the media. They are exciting to watch and redraw the boundaries of human achievement with the accompanying risks of injury and death. Adventure sports are usually performed in beautiful, exciting and remote locations or in extreme environments far away from medical assistance. Extreme sports usually involve an element of increased risk. These risks are highlighted by the media, usually after a reported accident or fatality but may vary according to the involvement of the participant; the weekend recreational adventure sports athlete or the experienced professional. A wide variety of sports fall into the category of adventure and extreme sports and with an increasing number of disciplines, this field is ever expanding. Sports are performed in contact with the “ground”; mountain running and biking, rock climbing, ice climbing and mountaineering. In the air: skydiving and base jumping. On water: surfing, white water kayaking and rafting, board sailing and diving. And also involve mechanical vehicles and animals! Some sports may be performed as a combination of few disciplines, such as water and air, e.g. kite surfing, and as so involve very unique mechanisms of injury. Sports events can also be merged to form a multi-sport race comprising many disciplines lastly from single to multi day races. Sports may involve competition with others, against the environment or with oneself, frequently the most ferocious adversary. Adventure sports are becoming increasingly popular in the general public and a few take these sports to an extreme level with the accompanying risks. Those that do, bring such time and dedication that they become professional in terms of training, preparation and finance. More and more people are enjoying adventure sports and unfortunately increased numbers are becoming injured as a result. Future research is progressing alongside the sport development, to allow the sport mechanisms, injury patterns and predisposing factors to be better understood. It is the hope of all researchers to make the sports safer without detracting from their adventurous nature. The aim and scope of our book would be to bring the sports medicine involved ineach of these sports into one volume. We would explain each sport including subtle similarities and differences, the common injury mechanisms, patterns of injury and treatment options. Additional chapters would include the mental characteristics of adventure racers and extreme sports athletes, together with the complexities of competing in hot and cold extreme environments. The book will present chapters focussing on the sports listed below, concentrating on published literature and newly formed studies by experts in the fields of injury epidemiology, prevention, management and rehabilitation.

The first comprehensive examination of injuries associated with adventure and extreme sports This book reviews the existing data on the frequency and distribution of injuries and the factors contributing to injuries in adventure and extreme sports. Further, it suggests injury prevention strategies and provides recommendations for future research. Providing the first comprehensive compilation of epidemiological data over a range of new age sports considered to be adventurous and extreme, this publication is also the first of its kind to track down all of the major literature associated with the topic. A uniform and evidence-based approach to organizing and interpreting the literature is used in all chapters. All of the sport-specific chapters are laid out with the same basic headings making it easier for the reader to find common information across chapters. Sports physicians, physical therapists, recreation managers, researchers, injury prevention specialists, the adventure and extreme sport industry, and the adventure and extreme sport participants themselves will find the book useful in identifying problem areas in which appropriate preventive measures can be initiated to reduce the risk and severity of injuries. They will also want to use the book as a source for future research related to injuries in adventure and extreme sports.

This technically oriented book on medicine as applied to extreme sports offers broad coverage of the field extending well beyond the usual focus on major trauma and acute injuries. In addition to the injuries and diseases associated with individual extreme sports, this book also addresses the topics of psychology, dermatology, ophthalmology, infectious diseases, physiology, nutrition, training, injury prevention strategies, rehabilitation, doping, treatment in hostile environments, and legal aspects. Innovative and less frequently considered topics are also discussed, such as recent advances in protective equipment and materials, the effects of exposure on whole-body vibration, and cold exposure risk management. More than 60 of the most authoritative experts from across the world have contributed to this book, drawing on their personal experiences and including practical examples whenever relevant. Both subject matter and illustrations have been selected with the utmost care, the latter including photographs of world-class athletes.The book’s multidisciplinary approach to the subject ensures that it will be relevant to a wide readership.

This book reviews the existing data on the frequency and distribution of injuries and the factors contributing to injuries in adventure and extreme sports. Further, it suggests injury prevention strategies and provides recommendations for future research. Providing the first comprehensive compilation of epidemiological data over a range of new age sports considered to be adventurous and extreme, this publication is also the first of its kind to track down all of the major literature associated with the topic.A uniform and evidence-based approach to organizing and interpreting the literature is used in all chapters. All of the sport-specific chapters are laid out with the same basic headings making it easier for the reader to find common information across chapters.Sports physicians, physical therapists, recreation managers, researchers, injury prevention specialists, the adventure and extreme sport industry, and the adventure and extreme sport participants themselves will find the book useful in identifying problem areas in which appropriate preventive measures can be initiated to reduce the risk and severity of injuries. They will also want to use the book as a source for future research related to injuries in adventure and extreme sports.

Providing a state-of-the-art account of the nature, distribution and determinants of sports injury in children and adolescents, this unique volume uses the public health model to describe the scope of the injury problem and the associated risk factors and evaluate the current research on injury prevention strategies as described in the literature. Thoughtfully divided in six sections, the nature of the young athlete and epidemiology of pediatric and adolescent sports injury are described first. Then an overview of the most common types of youth sports injuries as well as more serious injuries (e.g., concussions) and outcomes is presented, followed by a discussion of injury causation and prevention. Suggestions for future research rounds out the presentation. Each chapter is illustrated with tables which make it easy to examine injury factors between studies. Throughout, the editors and contributors have taken an evidence-based approach and adopted a uniform methodology to assess the data available. Ideal for physicians, physical therapists, athletic trainers and sports scientists alike, Injury in Pediatric and Adolescent Sports concisely and accurately presents the situation faced by clinicians treating young athletes and the challenges they face in keeping up with this growing and active population. Furthermore, the information in this book will be useful to allied health researchers and sport governing bodies as an informed basis for continued epidemiological study and implementation of injury prevention initiatives designed to reduce the incidence and severity of injuries encountered by young athletes.

Extreme sports, those activities that lie on the outermost edges of independent adventurous leisure activities, where a mismanaged mistake or accident would most likely result in death, have developed into a significant worldwide phenomenon (Brymer & Schweitzer, 2017a). Extreme sport activities are continually evolving, typical examples include BASE (an acronym for Buildings, Antennae, Span, Earth) jumping and related activities such as proximity flying, extreme skiing, big wave surfing, waterfall kayaking, rope free solo climbing and high-level mountaineering. While participant numbers in many traditional team and individual sports such as golf, basketball and racket sports have declined over the last decade or so, participant numbers in so called extreme sports have surged. Although extreme sports are still assumed to be a Western pastime, there has been considerable Global uptake. Equally, the idea that adventure sports are only for the young is also changing as participation rates across the generations are growing. For example, baby boomers are enthusiastic participants of adventure sports more generally (Brymer & Schweitzer, 2017b; Patterson, 2002) and Generation Z turn to extreme sports because they are popular and linked to escapism (Giannoulakis & Pursglove, 2017). Arguably, extreme sports now support a multi-billion dollar industry and the momentum seems to be intensifying. Traditional explanations for why extreme sports have become so popular are varied. For some, the popularity is explained as the desire to rebel against a society that is becoming too risk averse, for others it is about the spectacle and the merchandise that is associated with organised activities and athletes. For others it is just that there are a lot of people attracted by risk and danger or just want to show off. For others still it is about the desire to belong to sub-cultures and the glamour that goes with extreme sports. Some seek mastery in their chosen activity and in situations of significant challenges. This confusion is unfortunate as despite their popularity there is still a negative perception about extreme sports participation. There is a pressing need for clarity. The dominant research perspective has focused on positivist theory-driven perspectives that attempt to match extreme sports against predetermined characteristics. For the most part empirical research has conformed to predetermined societal perspectives. Other ways of knowing might reveal more nuanced perspectives of the human dimension of extreme sport participation. This special edition brings together cutting-edge research and thought examining psychology and extreme sports, with particular attention payed to the examination of motivations for initial participation, continued participation, effective performance, and outcomes from participation. References Brymer, E. & Schweitzer, R. (2017a) Phenomenology and the extreme sports experience, NY, Routledge. Brymer, E, & Schweitzer, R, D. (2017b) Evoking the Ineffable: The phenomenology of extreme sports, Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice 4(1):63-74 Giannoulakis, C., & Pursglove, L., K., (2017) Evolution of the Action Sport Setting. In S.E. Klein Ed. Defining Sport: Conceptions and Borderlines. Lexington Books, London. 128-146 Patterson, I. (2002) Baby Boomers and Adventure Tourism: The Importance of Marketing the Leisure Experience, World Leisure Journal, 44:2, 4-10, DOI: 10.1080/04419057.2002.9674265