SoCalGlenn

I sure hope this product will reduce the risk of serious injury, and improve EMS care. I usually try to remove the helmet on conscious patients, especially in cases when we may need access to the airway, or when the rider is wearing a helmet with no Camelback or chest protector (puts the c-spine at a very awkward upward angle for transport). I wonder if the Leatt brace keeps the head and torso at the same height when supine? How do we know the brace/helmet combination is: (1) maintaining good alignment, and (2) preventing movement during transport? There appears to be a gap between the brace and the helmet, by design, for the comfort of the rider... Regarding the effectiveness of the brace, here are some things the riders have been saying: "I just feel way more confident when I ride as well" "I'd feel like a complete jackass if I were to sustain a serious neck injury and wasn't wearing a brace (or) vice (versa) if I had one on and still suffered the same injuries." "No crashes yet with the brace on, so I can't comment on that." "I will not ride again until I have one" "My son now owns one as well and will wear it no matter what" "After reading the discription of the accident and (hearing) Chris's feelings on the performance of the Leatt Brace he was wearing and the possibility that it prevented further injuries; I bought mine this weekend" "He truly feels this thing saved his life" "We need to wear them always. We are setting an example." "Just a three word reminder to everyone out there: Leatt Neck Brace" "I'm sure there are others out there like me that are kinda freaked out about riding/racing without a Leatt brace." "I will never run with out it again just like a helmet" "I run it and love it... made a few mods to make it work better with a chest protector" "For scientific purposes, I fell down on Sat and face planted myself on a big rock and the brace did just what it was supposed to. My self respect was damamged but my neck felt fine." "Check out their website. Once you watch the videos of the testing dummies crashing, you'll see why the foam neck braces aren't worth a darn" "John was injured last year while racing a local MX ... and seriously broke his back into paralysis, but through surgery and time, has now gained feeling and control and is able to gently ride a mountain bike and walk with only a small amount of pain. John was wearing his Danais road racing back brace at the time of his injury, that he has used for many years both speedway and jet ski racing, even on a motocross courses" "Both Danny & John are now pushing rider neck and back protective systems, and are trying to push for a requirement for younger riders that race to use these systems. Just last weekend, over half of the AMA Supercross lite racers are now wearing neck systems and all of the KTM factory racers are now required to use them as well." "This looks awesome for racers that have suffered C spin injuries." "I believe this brace is like a seatbelt in a car...99% of the time it will prevent major injuries, but in rare cases it may attribute to the injury." Here is a list of professional motocross racers who have sustained spinal cord injuries lately, and a very interesting video from the latest casualty, urging riders to adopt the brace: "Everyone needs to watch this! David knows what he's talking about and I think I can add my stamp of approval is well. Nobody wants to end up in a chair unable to move your own bowels without someone else's assistance like I do now! The list is getting far too long: David Bailey Doug Henry Jeremy McGrath Ernesto Fonseca James Marshall Jimmy Button Here's the link: http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...71359427789623

The "Moto GPX" neck brace (www.leatt-brace.com) has really caught on in Southern California, especially in the off-road motorcycle racing scene. There was recently a spinal injury in Nevada, in which the motorcycle rider was wearing the brace, and sustained a spinal injury to his lower thorax, resulting in partial paralysis. Word spread that he did not suffer any neck injuries, and ever since, the braces are flying off shelves. This is the latest in a long line of neck-protection devices, which up till now have been marketed as "neck strain relievers". The Leatt brace was invented by a medical doctor, and claims it "helps reduce the risk" of spinal injuries when engaging in motorsports. This claim is backed purely off computer simulations and limited lab tests (no statistical research or injury data has been published). My question for you folks is two-fold: 1) Do you EMT-Ps and others believe this product is effective? 2) How the heck do we provide spinal stabilization for patients wearing this device? Any thoughts are appreciated, as my team will likely be seeing more patients wearing these in the coming months. Glenn NREMT-B

Yeah, I've spoken with a couple dealers and a manufacturers sales rep, but no solutions so far. It seems that this is not a common technical pursuit. I'm hoping someone in ski patrol or on a dirt-bike unit has come across a good system for working 2 channels off an HT...

My volunteer, medical search & rescue team has several rescue units on dirt bikes, who use handheld VHF radios and in-helmet head sets. We have a lot of radio traffic, so we've been using 2 channels. It is very hard for them to change channels or turn a scan mode on/off, with gloved hands, when the HT is mounted on their body. Are there any HT radios with a good dual-monitoring feature, which may make this semi-blind, two-channel operation easier? Regular memory scans are difficult and confusing for dirt-bike use. How about an HT that can be wired with a channel switch on the handlebars?

They have about 300 racers, over a course of rough desert terrain of 60 miles in length. The hosting organization (AMA - motorcycles, not medical) has to have 2 ambulances in the pits; one of which must be ALS. But even the 4x4 ambulances they have can't get into a lot of these areas. And sometimes both ambulances are full with patients, and there's backup ambulances coming, and a helo landing. So if I had to drive or ride 50 miles to get a traction splint, it's not happening. That's why we all carry what we need. That's my desert S&R organization. The other events I referred to are new ones for me; rally racing and buggy racing. Neither have good organizations like my desert S&R organization, even though both are long courses through inhospitable terrain. And I was being melodramatic about stocking our vehicles like ambulances. But we have sustained a very healthy organization off purely racer donations for decades. Every new capital expense must be evaluated in the context of the care that the racers would want, and at the cost of what else we could buy with that money. But once again, the rally & buggy races, as far as I've seen so far, don't seem to have good teams like my desert S&R NPO. This type of thing is where you have to throw your municipal protocol out the window. That is helpful to know, thanks. Maybe I'll run across one of those organizations some day, so I can leave the equipment behind. I was voted in to a private non-profit corporation S&R team, but that team only supports dirt-bike races in the desert. Very specialized. We're all mostly desert dirt bike riders, and quit racing and turned to this. It's a nice, close-knit family. The other two organizations are not medical; they are both racing sanctioning bodies. They both hire an ambulance or two, and then solicit volunteer saps like me to provide BLS support, which is desperately needed. Off-road racing of any sort is just barely surviving in Southern California, and I guess if they can get EMT-Bs for free, why would they want to pay for more ambulances? I don;t know for sure why; I've only been doing this 6 months or so. Is this an East-coast attitude or something? Surely I must be able to stereotype you guys in the same way you're stereotyping me. See my previous response to your brother egotist. There comes a point, when people like me (NREMT and county certs) volunteer for "glorified first aid" so frequently that we actually have skills that are kept up to date. Welcome to the grey area. Very professional indeed. My opinion of "EMS professional" is truly skyrocketing, thanks to you. Remind me to thank your mom. And I'm sorry.. so very sorry... if I use casual, and inappropriate terminology on - of all things - the internet. Thanks for the advice. Want some Tylenol? -be polite

I thought this was supposed to be a supportive web site, not a discouraging, rude, self-righteous web site. Or are you just the one bad apple? I don't know why you enjoy tearing people apart, and frankly it worries me that you are the one in the EMS profession. Mid-femur fractures are very common in open desert racing. My buddy broke both of his in one crash. My dad broke one of his in front of my eyes. My teammates (yes, teammates, not like your victims) have applied the sager numerous times, relieving pain and saving damage numerous times. A couple weeks ago we had a patient with head trauma and a broken clavicle. He wasn't A&OX4 (yes A&O x 4, not 3 in our county, no need to tear me apart on that either), so I got him to the ALS ambulance quick, and sure enough, he collapsed in the care of the ALS guys, right in front of me, thus requiring a helo. We average about 1 helo per race in the desert. We have diabetic emergencies, medical emergencies, environmental emergencies, open fractures. Nearly half our patients are children or teenagers. A racer in my club died 2 years ago; we suspect he hit his head, then wandered off until he collapsed. We have severe bleeding cases. Torn open cheeks, handlebars through abdomens, broken noses. Our entire volunteer team travels to the desert between 20 and 25 weekends a year. I travel 3 hours each way. I work my butt off 40 hrs a week supporting my family, and was the only person in my EMT-B class of about 30 people that was doing this to learn valuable skills. I ranked in the top 5% of my EMT class, did very well on the NREMT, and maintain a vigilant attitude to constantly learn. I trust and value my EMT-B training, no matter how "basic" it is. Now I am part of a team out there in the desert, and it feels great. It feels great to make someone else's day, and to make the tough decisions that wouldn't be made without me. It feels good to hand-off a patient from my truck to the ambulance or the helo crew, and hear them thank me for the good packaging and patient info. It feels good to help train other volunteers with less than my training, and it feels good to have racers thank me; even those who haven't needed our services yet. Do I interpret heart rhythms? No! Do I inject medication? no! But do you mean to tell me that I have to be like YOU to be making a difference? I sure hope not, because I don't like what I see. I didn't ask for your unjust criticisms. I want help to choose gear that will serve my patients' needs best, while still being affordable enough so that I can actually get it! I just bought a brand new KED for $54 out the door, thanks to one of the great members of this community. I like making a difference, so damn straight it's my hobby! If you have a problem with that, I suggest you see someone about your childhood issues!

Well, if you put it that way, I guess I volunter for multiple agencies, and only truely "belong" to one. Is there such a thing as a freelance EMT? If so, maybe I'm one of those. My main organization authorized reimbursement for anything I want (bilateral sager splint is on it's way, too), but they don't have the dough to make everyone's personal vehicle into an ambulance (volunteer non-profit S&Rs don't bill insurance companies, so we're poor). I am curious, though... how do true 100% freelance EMTs (for hire as medical stand-by at sporting events, etc.) buy their equipment? I haven't seen any grants that are non-homeland security.

I'm not in EMS as a profession; only volunteer on the weekends for non-profit org's, etc.. I think I can get my NPO to reimburse me, although we don't usually use KEDs for dirt bike racers. Thanks, Marty! I'll definitely check that out.

Thanks, Marty! Yeah, for myself when I work rally or buggy races out in the boonies.

I need a comfortable back-pack that's good for easy access to my medical supplies (BLS). Do you guys think the STOMP II is worth the money for BLS? I don't have any medications, and much fewer little items to fit into neat rows of elastic. On the other hand, I don't like using a regular, cavernous back-pack, because it's hard to see everything. Also, I need the back pack to have a waist belt, and possibly a chest buckle, as I ride S&R on a dirt bike. What do you guys think? Is the STOMP II best for me, or would a Stat-Pack be better?

I'm eyeballing a $90 "RED" (Red Extrication Device), which appears to be identical to the traditional KED in all respects, from looking at the picture. They say it has a "rigid spine" and plywood slats inside. Does anybody know what material is inside the traditional KED? Thanks.