Background Pole sports, such as pole dancing, are recently gaining popularity as a form of fitness, combining dance and acrobatics. Many new, recreational athletes are joining pole sports every year. According to the international pole sports federation, this emerging new sport is so popular that it could be a future olympic sport.

Objective The aim of this study is to describe the epidemiology of injuries in recreational athletes of pole sports, who were referred to the emergency demartment of our hospital.

Design This a retrospective, case-series study based on hospital records, collected between December 2015 and July 2016.

Setting The study took place in the department of orthopaedic surgery, of the general hospital of karditsa, a provincial hospital in central Greece.

Patients (or Participants) The study included all recreational athletes who were presented to our emergency department, due to injuries occured while performing pole dancing. 34 patients were finally included.

Main Outcome Measurements The primary study outcome is the epidemiology of injuries in pole sports.

Results Overall, 29.4% of patients suffered from low back and hip, strains and contusions, 20.6% suffered from knee sprains and contusions, 17.7% suffered from wrist sprains, 14.7% suffered from ankle sprains, 5.9% suffered from neck (cervical spine) strains, 5.9% suffered from concussion, 1 patient (2.9%) presented with a sizable disc herniation and 1 patient (2.9%) presented with a fracture of the fifth metatarsal bone.

Conclusions As pole sposts become more and more popular every year, injuries occuring during performance of this demanding activity are increasing. Sprains, strains, and contusions are the most frequent but more severe injuries such as concussions and fractures are also present due to falls from the pole. Studies with bigger samples are required in order to define the epidemiology of injuries in this new, emerging sport.