role of catastrophic injury or sudden death of the horse in race‐day jockey falls and injuries in California, 2007–2012

REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY: If equine conditions with high likelihood of jockey injury can be determined and subsequently prevented, jockey safety can be enhanced. OBJECTIVES: To identify racehorse injuries or conditions with greatest risk for jockey falls and injuries. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective correlation of race‐day jockey fall and injury data with racehorse fatality data. METHODS: Thoroughbred (TB) and Quarter Horse (QH) racehorse cause of death and jockey fall and injury data for California flat races were reviewed for a 6‐year period. Race and jockey race ride population data were used to determine jockey fall and injury incidence rates relative to cause of racehorse death, and were assessed using Poisson regression. Differences in proportions were assessed using Fisher's exact, Pearson's χ², and Cochran–Mantel–Haenszel tests. RESULTS: 707 racehorses experienced race‐related catastrophic injury or sudden death. 199 jockeys had 601 falls with 325 injuries. Jockeys were 162 times more likely to fall (95% confidence interval 137–192; P