Sex Differences in Head Acceleration Events in Law Enforcement Corrections Cadets.

Purpose: Law enforcement cadets (LECs) undergo subject control technique training that may expose them to repetitive head impacts recorded as head acceleration events (HAEs) using instrumented mouthguards. Prior research suggests that sex and/or gender differences in HAE frequency and magnitude vary by sport. This study aimed to examine sex differences in HAE exposure among LECs during training.

Virtual reality-based eye tracking throughout typical concussion recovery.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of concussion on visual and oculomotor function using a virtual reality-based eye tracking system throughout recovery. A prospective, longitudinal cohort design assessed at the subacute, return-to-activity, and 6-month timepoints was used. Recently concussed ( = 21; age = 30 ± 14) and healthy control participants ( = 20; age = 29 ± 11) completed visual and oculomotor testing at three timepoints (subacute, return-to-activity, and 6-months) using a virtual reality-based head mounted display eye tracking system sampled at 100 Hz.

Associations of Collegiate Football Career and Incident Concussion with Players' Health: A Longitudinal Study from the CARE Consortium.

Background: The influence of repetitive head impacts on collegiate football players remains unclear as prior research is often limited to small samples or short-term studies focused on single seasons.

Objective: Our objective was to determine the associations between collegiate football career or incident concussion and changes in neurocognitive function, postural stability, and physical and psychological health.

Methods: In total, 574 football players enrolled in the Grand Alliance Concussion Assessment, Research and Education (CARE) Consortium (median age 18.

Collision Sports and Neurodegenerative Disease: Inclusion of Moderating Risk Factors.

Collision sport participation with repetitive head impacts has been associated with increased risk of neurodegenerative diseases, but also have lower mortality rates for many individual conditions. The role of modifiable risk factors in later life development of neurodegenerative diseases in athletes is a clear knowledge gap and a potential opportunity for interventions to improve health related quality of life.

fMRI Activation in Sensorimotor Regions at 6 Weeks After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

Background: Brain activity during knee movements is altered throughout the sensorimotor network after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Patients at 2 to 5 years after surgery appear to require greater neural activity to perform basic knee movement patterns, but it is unclear if brain activity differences within sensorimotor regions are present early after surgery. It is also unknown whether uninvolved knee movements elicit similar or unique activity compared with involved knee movements.

Test-Retest Reliability and Reliable Change Estimates for Sensorimotor Concussion Assessments in Healthy Young Adults.

Context: Sensorimotor impairments are common sequela following concussion, but recovery following a concussion is often determined through examiner scored clinical testing. There are emerging technologies that provide objective methods to determine physiological impairment after concussion, but the psychometrics of these tools are lacking and must be established for use in clinical practice.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the test-retest reliability and provide reliable change estimates in healthy young adults for outcomes from 3 emerging technologies providing objective assessments of sensorimotor function in healthy young adults.

The Validity and Usability of Markerless Motion Capture and Inertial Measurement Units for Quantifying Dynamic Movements.

Purpose: Motion capture technology is quickly evolving, providing researchers, clinicians, and coaches with more access to biomechanics data. Markerless motion capture and inertial measurement units (IMUs) are continually developing biomechanics tools that need validation for dynamic movements before widespread use in applied settings. This study evaluated the validity of a markerless motion capture, IMU, and red, green, blue, and depth (RGBD) camera system as compared with marker-based motion capture during countermovement jumps, overhead squats, lunges, and runs with cuts.

Youth Soccer Heading Exposure and Its Effects on Clinical Outcome Measures.

Purposeful heading, in which players may use their heads to advance the ball in play, is a unique part of soccer. Clinical outcome measures used to aid in the diagnosis of a concussion have long been a cornerstone of the contemporary measurements associated with the short- and long-term effects of monitoring repetitive head impacts (RHI) and soccer heading exposure. The effects of RHI in the youth population are still unknown, therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine if heading exposure is predictive of changes in self-reported symptoms, neurocognitive functioning, gait, and balance in female youth soccer players over the course of one soccer season.

Development and validation of a two-dimensional pseudorandom balance perturbation test.

Introduction: Pseudorandom balance perturbations use unpredictable disturbances of the support surface to quantify reactive postural control. The ability to quantify postural responses to a continuous multidirectional perturbation in two orthogonal dimensions of sway (e.g.

Factors Associated With Return to Activity After Concussion Among Female Service Academy Members: Findings From the NCAA-DoD CARE Consortium.

Introduction: Service academy members are at high risk for concussions as a result of participation in both sports and military-specific training activities. Approximately 17% of active duty service members are female, and they face unique challenges in achieving timely recovery from concussions. Understanding the unique characteristics affecting return to unrestricted activity (RTA) among female service academy members is imperative for the ever-growing proportion of females across the U.

SCAT Symptom Evolution in the Acute Concussion Phase: Findings from the NCAA-DoD CARE Consortium.

The Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT) is the most widely used tool following sport-related concussion (SRC). Initial SCAT symptom burden is a strong predictor of recovery in collegiate athletes; however, it is unknown if symptom presentation varies within the acute (<48 h) post-SRC phase. The purpose of this cohort study was to examine acute SRC symptom presentation among the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) athletes.

Silent Struggles: Traumatic Brain Injuries and Mental Health in Law Enforcement.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of head injuries (HIs), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depressive symptoms in law enforcement officers (LEOs) and (2) the association between HIs and psychological health conditions.

Setting: County-level survey administered via Research Electronic Data Capture.

Participants: A total of 381 LEOs completed the survey (age = 43 ± 11 years; 40 [11%] females; time as LEO = 1-50 years, median = 15 years).

Headgear use in girls' lacrosse-stakeholders not ready for change.

Purpose: Mandating headgear for field players in girls' lacrosse to reduce head injuries, including concussion, has been heavily debated. However, research regarding the need and effectiveness of mandated headgear use in girls' lacrosse is still developing. Therefore, this qualitative study aimed to identify the need for and barriers to the development of mandated headgear use policies in girls' lacrosse in Ohio.

Current Clinical Concepts: A Framework for Concussion Management Strategies in Law Enforcement Officers.

Athletic trainers are increasingly used in nontraditional settings, such as in law enforcement, where they can contribute to healthcare management, including concussion management of law enforcement officers (LEOs). Despite the prevalence of concussions among LEOs, there is a notable gap in concussion management guidelines for this population. LEOs may lack the education and resources necessary for concussion recognition and proper management.

Neural Mechanisms Associated With Postural Control in Collegiate Soccer and Non-Soccer Athletes.

Background And Purpose: Sport-specific training may improve postural control, while repetitive head acceleration events (RHAEs) may compromise it. Understanding the neural mechanisms underlying postural control may contextualize changes due to training and RHAE. The goal of this study was to determine whether postural sway during the Balance Error Scoring System (BESS) is related to white matter organization (WMO) in collegiate athletes.

The Interval Between Concussions Does Not Influence Time to Asymptomatic or Return to Play: A CARE Consortium Study.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to determine if the time interval between two concussive events influences the number of days to asymptomatic status, days to return to play, or performance on common post-concussion assessments following the second concussion.

Methods: Data from 448 collegiate athletes and service academy cadets with two concussions (time between concussions: median 295.0 days [interquartile range: 125.

Wearable Loop Sensor for Bilateral Knee Flexion Monitoring.

We have previously reported wearable loop sensors that can accurately monitor knee flexion with unique merits over the state of the art. However, validation to date has been limited to single-leg configurations, discrete flexion angles, and in vitro (phantom-based) experiments. In this work, we take a major step forward to explore the bilateral monitoring of knee flexion angles, in a continuous manner, in vivo.

Sex Differences in Recovery Trajectories of Assessments for Sport-Related Concussion Among NCAA Athletes: A CARE Consortium Study.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine sex differences in recovery trajectories of assessments for sport-related concussion using Concussion Assessment, Research and Education (CARE) Consortium data.

Methods: National Collegiate Athletic Association athletes (N = 906; 61% female) from sex-comparable sports completed a pre-season baseline assessment and post-sport-related concussion assessments within 6 h of injury, 24-48 h, when they initiated their return to play progression, when they were cleared for unrestricted return to play, and 6 months post-injury. Assessments included the Standardized Assessment of Concussion, Balance Error Scoring System, Brief Symptom Inventory-18, Immediate Post-concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT), Sport Concussion Assessment Tool-3 symptom evaluation, Clinical Reaction Time, King-Devick test, Vestibular Ocular Motor Screen, 12-item Short-Form Health Survey, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Satisfaction with Life Scale.

Characterizing Head Acceleration Events in Law Enforcement Cadets During Subject Control Technique Training.

Law enforcement cadets (LECs) complete weeks of subject control technique training. Similar sport-related combat training has been shown to expose participants to head acceleration events (HAEs) that have potential to result in short- and long-term impairments. The purpose of this study was to describe the number and magnitude of HAEs in LECs throughout their training.

Quantitative Analysis of Ball-Head Impact Exposure in Youth Soccer Players.

Since the implementation of the US Soccer heading guidelines released in 2015, little to no research on ball-head impact exposure in the United States youth soccer population has been conducted. The purpose was to compare ball-head impact exposure across sex and age in youth soccer players over a weekend tournament. Ten male and female games for each age group (Under-12 [U12], U13, and U14) were video recorded at a weekend tournament for a total of 60 games.

Postinjury Outcomes After Non-Sport-Related Concussion: A CARE Consortium Study.

Context: Concussion research has primarily focused on sport-related mechanisms and excluded non-sport-related mechanisms. In adult populations, non-sport-related concussions (non-SRCs) demonstrated worse clinical outcomes compared with sport-related concussions (SRCs); however, investigations of non-SRCs in college-aged patients are limited.

Objectives: To examine clinical outcomes in collegiate athletes with non-SRCs compared with SRCs and explore sex differences in outcomes among collegiate athletes with non-SRCs.

Preinjury Measures Do Not Predict Future Concussion Among Collegiate Student-Athletes: Findings From the CARE Consortium.

This prospective cohort study aimed to determine whether preinjury characteristics and performance on baseline concussion assessments predicted future concussions among collegiate student-athletes. Participant cases (concussed = 2529; control = 30,905) completed preinjury: demographic forms (sport, concussion history, sex), Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Test, Balance Error Scoring System, Sport Concussion Assessment Tool symptom checklist, Standardized Assessment of Concussion, Brief Symptom Inventory-18 item, Wechsler Test of Adult Reading, and Brief Sensation Seeking Scale. We used machine-learning logistic regressions with area under the curve, sensitivity, and positive predictive values statistics for univariable and multivariable analyses.

Primary and Secondary Risk Factors Associated With Concussion Symptom Clusters in Collegiate Athletes: Results From the NCAA-DoD Grand Alliance CARE Consortium.

Background: There is a broad and diverse range of symptoms after a concussion, from irritability to nausea. This heterogeneity of symptoms is a challenge for clinicians managing the different presentations among injuries. Prior research has investigated the structure of postconcussive symptoms to determine if they can be grouped into clusters of related symptoms.

Contact or Collision Sport History, Repetitive Neurotrauma, and Patient-Reported Outcomes in Early to Midadulthood.

Context: Data on the early to midlife effects of repetitive neurotrauma on patient-reported outcomes have been delimited to homogeneous samples of male athletes without comparison groups or accounting for modifying factors such as physical activity.

Objective: To determine the effect of contact or collision sport participation and repetitive neurotrauma on patient-reported outcomes among early to middle-aged adults.

Design: Cross-sectional study.