Concussive head impact biomechanics in NCAA DIII women's lacrosse and soccer athletes
Access Type
Open Access
Entry Number
83
Start Date
4-5-2017 10:45 AM
End Date
4-5-2017 11:00 AM
Department
Biomedical Science
Abstract
Context: The majority of head impact research has been completed on male athletes. Despite this fact, there is limited research on the biomechanics of concussive impacts in women’s lacrosse and soccer. Objective: To investigate the biomechanics of concussive head impacts in women’s lacrosse and soccer athletes. Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Setting: Collegiate athletic fields. Participants: 4 NCAA DIII women’s soccer and lacrosse athletes (age=19.20±1.10 years, height=64.00±1.58 cm, weight= 59.09±2.55 kg). Interventions: Participants of a larger study wore xPatch sensors during games and practices. Main Outcome Measures: Linear acceleration (LA) in g and rotational acceleration (RA) in deg/s2. Results: There were four total concussions during the two seasons, two in soccer (Fall 2014 and 2015) and two in lacrosse (Spring 2016). Two of the concussive impacts occurred during games and two occurred during practices. The average LA for the concussive impacts was 24.386±29.42 g and the average RA was 368,269.750±225,318.56 deg/s². The range for LA was 15.78 g - 76.53 g and the range for RA was 154,308.00 deg/s2 - 686178.00 deg/s2. Conclusion: Our results indicate the average LA and RA which caused the concussions is much lower than those reported in the literature for professional football (LA of 61-144 g), collegiate football (LA of 61-169 g), and high school football (LA of 61-169 g). These results suggest concussions are heterogeneous from a mechanism standpoint, potentially due to differences in style of play and physiological differences between males and females. Keywords: xPatch, mild traumatic brain injury, linear acceleration, rotational acceleration
Faculty Mentor(s)
Dr. Thomas Bowman
Sayre Powerpoint
Concussive head impact biomechanics in NCAA DIII women's lacrosse and soccer athletes
Context: The majority of head impact research has been completed on male athletes. Despite this fact, there is limited research on the biomechanics of concussive impacts in women’s lacrosse and soccer. Objective: To investigate the biomechanics of concussive head impacts in women’s lacrosse and soccer athletes. Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Setting: Collegiate athletic fields. Participants: 4 NCAA DIII women’s soccer and lacrosse athletes (age=19.20±1.10 years, height=64.00±1.58 cm, weight= 59.09±2.55 kg). Interventions: Participants of a larger study wore xPatch sensors during games and practices. Main Outcome Measures: Linear acceleration (LA) in g and rotational acceleration (RA) in deg/s2. Results: There were four total concussions during the two seasons, two in soccer (Fall 2014 and 2015) and two in lacrosse (Spring 2016). Two of the concussive impacts occurred during games and two occurred during practices. The average LA for the concussive impacts was 24.386±29.42 g and the average RA was 368,269.750±225,318.56 deg/s². The range for LA was 15.78 g - 76.53 g and the range for RA was 154,308.00 deg/s2 - 686178.00 deg/s2. Conclusion: Our results indicate the average LA and RA which caused the concussions is much lower than those reported in the literature for professional football (LA of 61-144 g), collegiate football (LA of 61-169 g), and high school football (LA of 61-169 g). These results suggest concussions are heterogeneous from a mechanism standpoint, potentially due to differences in style of play and physiological differences between males and females. Keywords: xPatch, mild traumatic brain injury, linear acceleration, rotational acceleration