Survey of injuries among Slovenian sport climbers

BACKGROUND: Rock climbing is associated with a high risk of musculoskeletal injuries, yet limited data exist for Slovenian sport climbers. Understanding the prevalence, types, and mechanisms of injuries is essential for developing targeted prevention strategies. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 191 Slovenian sport climbers registered with the national federation. The questionnaire assessed demographics, climbing characteristics, and injury-related variables using the UIAA injury definition. Non-parametric tests (Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis, Dunn-Šidák post-hoc) and Spearman correlations examined associations between injury counts and climbing variables. RESULTS: Overall incidence was 5.2 injuries per 1000 climbing hours. Men sustained more injuries than women (2.8±3.1 vs. 2.0±2.6; P=0.022). The number of injuries correlated weakly with weekly climbing hours (ρ=0.20; P=0.005) and climbing difficulty (ρ=0.20; P=0.007). A strong positive correlation was found between climbing experience and climbing difficulty (ρ=0.55; P