School rugby injuries have declined, but tragedy still happens - Doctor
Stricter rugby laws have been implemented to try and protect players from injury.
Picture: Pexels
Lester Kiewit speaks with Dr Nicholas Kruger, Head of the Acute Spinal Cord Injury Unit at Groote Schuur Hospital.
Listen to the interview in the audio below.
Rugby laws have changed over the years to try and prevent serious injuries.
Despite these changes, a 17-year-old boy died on Monday after sustaining a rugby injury over the weekend.
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According to Kruger, there have been fewer rugby injuries in recent years but they still see catastrophic injuries from time to time.
“There definitely has been a decrease since about 10 years ago.”
- Dr Nicholas Kruger, Head of the Acute Spinal Cord Injury Unit at Groote Schuur Hospital
The main cause of injury is usually tackling, with the person causing the tackle usually the one injured, he adds.
Kruger says many schools do not have the resources to have paramedics or emergency services on standby at rugby matches to manage serious injuries.
Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.