Reduced head-to-head contact rates in elite-level women's rugby league following a season-long tackle technique coaching intervention.

Objective: Within women's rugby league (n=12 teams), we (1) identified modifiers for head-to-head contacts informed by sport partners (eg, players, coaches, match officials); (2) compared head-to-head contact and concussion rates to the previous two seasons following a one-season tackle technique coaching intervention and (3) explored barriers and enablers of the intervention.

Methods: A multi-method design was used. Part 1: Mitigation strategies were identified by sport partners reviewing footage of head-to-head contacts, informing the development of a coach-targeted tackle technique intervention.

Instrumented Mouthguards in Men's Rugby League: Quantifying the Incidence and Probability of Head Acceleration Events at a Group and Individual Level.

Background: There is growing concern that exposure to head acceleration events (HAEs) may be associated with long-term neurological effects.

Objectives: To quantify the incidence and probability of HAEs during men's professional rugby league match-play on a group and individual basis using instrumented mouthguards (iMGs).

Methods: A total of 91 men's professional rugby league players participating in the 2023 Super League season wore iMGs, resulting in the collection of 775 player matches (mean 8.

Developing nursing and allied health professional leaders: the wider impact of a professional development initiative on leadership.

Background: Effective leadership is necessary across healthcare systems to ensure person-centred safe and effective care delivered by a workforce that is empowered to flourish. Similarly, research is essential to underpin evidence-based clinical practice to optimise the quality of care provided. It is important to develop the capacity and capability of the healthcare workforce to become effective clinical and research leaders; however, there are challenges.

Tackle Characteristics Resulting in Potential Head Injuries in Elite Men's Rugby League: A Video Analysis Study of 746 Tackles.

Objectives: Contact with the head should be avoided during a rugby league tackle, given the inherent risks of head injuries. This study aimed to characterise a sample of tackles, retrospectively identified as resulting in a potential head injury by the Rugby Football League (RFL) match review panel.

Design: Retrospective video analysis study.

Can a novel computer vision-based framework detect head-on-head impacts during a rugby league tackle?

Background: Head-on-head impacts are a risk factor for concussion, which is a concern for sports. Computer vision frameworks may provide an automated process to identify head-on-head impacts, although this has not been applied or evaluated in rugby.

Methods: This study developed and evaluated a novel computer vision framework to automatically classify head-on-head and non-head-on-head impacts.

Attitudes of health and social care professionals towards the use of blended diets for enteral tube feeding for children and young people.

Using a blended diet as an alternative to commercial formula is becoming more popular amongst parents and carers of children and young people (CYP) requiring long-term enteral tube feeding (ETF). Emerging evidence has demonstrated physiological and social benefits; however, families report feeling unsupported to use a blended diet in settings outside the home. This study aimed to explore the attitudes of health and social care staff towards the use of blended diets for CYP.

'Mind your head', tackle characteristics associated with concussions in rugby league: A case-control study.

Objectives: Identify tackle characteristics associated with concussions in male professional rugby league.

Design: Case-control study.

Methods: Tackles resulting in 196 clinically diagnosed concussions and 6592 non-concussive tackles were analysed, from the men's rugby league Super League between 2018 and 2022.

Blended diets for children and young people: applying the evidence to nursing practice.

Enteral tube feeding is commonly used for children and young people with complex health and care needs. Blended diets are becoming more widely used and there is increasing evidence to show the benefits of a blended diet for children, young people and their families. This article aims to collate recent evidence on blended diets and describe the implications for nursing practice.

Non-reporting of sport-related concussion symptoms: a cross-sectional study of community rugby league players in the UK.

Unlabelled: Recognising and removing players with suspected sport-related concussions is crucial for community sports.

Objectives: Quantify rates and factors associated with non-reporting of concussion symptoms in community rugby league.

Methods: Overall, 484 community rugby league players aged ≥18 years and 965 parents of rugby league players aged <18 years completed an online survey, regarding concussion history, knowledge, prevalence and reasons for non-reporting of concussion, long-term implications and perceptions of concussion.

Time to level the playing field between men and women - Given similar injury incidence: A two-season analysis of match injuries in elite men and women's (Super League) rugby league.

Objectives: To compare match injury incidence, severity and burden in men's and women's elite rugby league.

Design: A prospective cohort epidemiological study.

Methods: Time loss match injury data were collected from all men's (11,301 exposure hours) and women's (5,244 exposure hours) Super League clubs.

Training injuries in elite men's senior and academy (Super League) rugby league; an analysis of 224,000 exposure-hours.

Objectives: Report two-years of training injury data in senior and academy professional rugby league.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Methods: Match and training time-loss injuries and exposure data were recorded from two-seasons of the European Super League competition.

Longitudinal changes in anthropometric, physiological, and physical qualities of international women's rugby league players.

This is the first study to assess longitudinal changes in anthropometric, physiological, and physical qualities of international women's rugby league players. Thirteen forwards and 11 backs were tested three times over a 10-month period. Assessments included: standing height and body mass, body composition measured by dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), a blood panel, resting metabolic rate (RMR) assessed by indirect calorimetry, aerobic capacity (i.

I won't let you down; why 20% of Men's and Women's Super League players underreported suspected concussions.

Objectives: Quantify and identify factors associated with concussion underreporting in Super League rugby league players.

Design: Cross sectional survey.

Methods: During the 2022 season preseason, 422 Men's and Women's Super League players completed an online survey quantifying player demographics, rugby playing history, concussion history, prevalence of, and reasons for underreporting concussion, concussion knowledge and long-term implications and perceptions of concussion.

Incidence of concussion in men's Super League, Championship, and Academy rugby league matches between 2016 and 2022.

Objectives: To quantify the incidence of concussion and compare between playing levels in male rugby league.

Design: Retrospective cohort.

Methods: Between 2016 and 2022, medically diagnosed concussions in Super League, Championship, and Academy competitions were reported to the Rugby Football League via club medical staff.

Blended diets for tube-fed children and young people: a rapid review update.

Background: Many children and young people with complex health and care needs use enteral feeding tubes to optimise their nutritional intake in the UK and other countries. Blended diets as an alternative to the exclusive use of commercial formula are becoming more commonly used, and there is evidence to support the benefits of using a blended diet on the child or young person and their wider family.A rapid review was published in 2017 exploring blended diets as a valid alternative to commercial formula for enteral feeding for children and young people.

The propensity of non-concussive and concussive head contacts during elite-level women's rugby league matches: A prospective analysis of over 14,000 tackle events.

Objectives: Identify the frequency, propensity, and factors related to tackle events which result in contact with the head in elite-level women's rugby league.

Design: Prospective video analysis study.

Methods: Video footage from 59 Women's Super League matches were analysed (n = 14,378 tackle events).

Contributors to negative biopsychosocial health or performance outcomes in rugby players (CoNBO): a systematic review and Delphi study protocol.

The importance of contributors that can result in negative player outcomes in sport and the feasibility and barriers to modifying these to optimise player health and well-being have yet to be established. Within rugby codes (rugby league, rugby union and rugby sevens), within male and female cohorts across playing levels (full-time senior, part-time senior, age grade), this project aims to develop a consensus on contributors to negative biopsychosocial outcomes in rugby players (known as the CoNBO study) and establish stakeholder perceived importance of the identified contributors and barriers to their management. This project will consist of three parts; part 1: a systematic review, part 2: a three-round expert Delphi study and part 3: stakeholder rating of feasibility and barriers to management.

Ready for impact? A validity and feasibility study of instrumented mouthguards (iMGs).

Objectives: Assess the validity and feasibility of current instrumented mouthguards (iMGs) and associated systems.

Methods: Phase I; four iMG systems (Biocore-Football Research Inc (FRI), HitIQ, ORB, Prevent) were compared against dummy headform laboratory criterion standards (25, 50, 75, 100 ). Phase II; four iMG systems were evaluated for on-field validity of iMG-triggered events against video-verification to determine true-positives, false-positives and false-negatives (20±9 player matches per iMG).

Injury risk factors and barriers to their mitigation for women playing rugby league: a Delphi study.

This study aimed to 1) develop a consensus (≥70% agreement between experts) on injury risk factors specific to women playing rugby league, 2) establish the importance of the identified injury risk factors and the feasibility of mitigating these risk factors and 3) establish context specific barriers to injury risk management. Aim 1: A Delphi panel, consisting of 12 experts in rugby league and injury (e.g.

Introduction of blended diet for enteral tube feeding in paediatrics: A case report.

: Advances in medical technology have resulted in changes to enteral tube feeding (ETF). Standard practice in the UK is to use commercial formula for ETF via the stomach or small intestine; however, blended diets are becoming increasingly popular. Emerging evidence shows benefits of a blended diet although evidence informing clinical guidance is sparse.

Quantifying head acceleration exposure via instrumented mouthguards (iMG): a validity and feasibility study protocol to inform iMG suitability for the TaCKLE project.

Instrumented mouthguards (iMGs) have the potential to quantify head acceleration exposures in sport. The Rugby Football League is looking to deploy iMGs to quantify head acceleration exposures as part of the Tackle and Contact Kinematics, Loads and Exposure (TaCKLE) project. iMGs and associated software platforms are novel, thus limited validation studies exist.

Medical care and first aid: an interassociation consensus framework for organised non-elite sport during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The cessation of amateur and recreational sport has had significant implications globally, impacting economic, social and health facets of population well-being. As a result, there is pressure to resume sport at all levels. The ongoing prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 and subsequent 'second waves' require urgent best practice guidelines to be developed to return recreational (non-elite) sports as quickly as possible while prioritising the well-being of the participants and support staff.

SARS-CoV-2 transmission during rugby league matches: do players become infected after participating with SARS-CoV-2 positive players?

Objectives: To examine the interactions between SARS-CoV-2 positive players and other players during rugby league matches and determine within-match SARS-CoV-2 transmission risk.

Methods: Four Super League matches in which SARS-CoV-2 positive players were subsequently found to have participated were analysed. Players were identified as increased-risk contacts, and player interactions and proximities were analysed by video footage and global positioning system (GPS) data.

Interassociation consensus recommendations for pitch-side emergency care and personal protective equipment for elite sport during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated many novel responses in healthcare including sport and exercise medicine. The cessation of elite sport almost globally has had significant economic implications and resulted in pressure to resume sport in very controlled conditions. This includes protecting pitch-side medical staff and players from infection.