In late March, the National Athletic Trainers’ Association released its updated recommendations for the management of sport-related concussions – a document that hadn’t been updated in over a decade.

A study published in JAMA Network Neurology found that “repetitive heading during a professional soccer career is associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment later in life” and self-reported dementias in retired male professional soccer players

A recent study presented at the Radiological Society of North America found a significant decline in the microscopic structural integrity of brain tissue and a decline in verbal learning performance for young adult amateur soccer players who performed a high number of headers over two years.

A recent literature review conducted by Danielle DuPlessis et al. investigated the use of multi-domain assessments in tracking the recovery from concussion in both sports-related and military contexts. The study, published in Physical Therapy in Sport, found a strong preference for dual-task assessments, specifically, combinations of walking on a level surface while the participant answered questions.

A retrospective cohort study by Jacob Jo et al. revealed that sport-related concussions occurring during the early third of the season exhibited a quicker resolution of symptoms than those occurring in the later third of the season, although this finding did not remain statistically significant in a multivariate analysis.

The Q-collar is commonly referred to as a concussion-prevention method, although the company says the Q-collar helps “protect the brain” of contact athletes over a season of play. However, limitations include not being “demonstrated to prevent long-term cognitive function deficits,” no evaluation of clinical outcome impacts, and the data not “demonstrating that the device can prevent concussion or serious brain injury.”

Researchers are finalizing their recent pilot study on photobiomodulation conducted by The University of Utah. In this video produced by the research team, several of the men who participated in the study talk about their deteriorating health due to repetitive head hits and concussions, their concerns about CTE, and how light therapy during the clinical trial substantially improved their health.

A preliminary study suggests that younger soccer players encounter more total head impacts during “repetitive technical training activities,” while scrimmages and games resulted in fewer head impacts of “greater magnitude.”

The top-flight of English football, the Premier League (PL), announced plans to administer saliva tests that could potentially diagnose concussions sustained during games or training sessions. The trial, an academic study funded by the Premier League and intended to validate salivary biomarkers as a diagnostic tool, may start sometime this season (which ends in May 2022).

Gregory Tierney published a review on concussion biomechanics, head acceleration events (HAE), and brain injury criteria in Taylor & Francis Online. Tierney pooled data from past studies to understand the relationship between the kinematic magnitude and rotational nature of HAE and damage to the brain.

A study found a dramatic increase — more than 200% — in sports-related head injuries among female athletes ages 14-18” between 2000-2019. Moreover, the study also found that adolescent women who play soccer, basketball, cheerleading, softball, and volleyball are the most likely to be admitted to the emergency room (ER) with a concussion or traumatic brain injury.

The study found an association between repeated concussions in rugby and having mental health issues – such as increased irritability, depression, and extreme mood changes during retirement. The study found that “professional rugby players are more likely to have mental health issues in retirement than athletes in non-contact sports.”

According to The Guardian, the Rugby Football League (RFL) has approved the use of mouthguards that could detect whether a player is at risk for a concussion. The mouthguards were trialed by the Leeds Rhinos, an English Rugby team, and will be deployed next season. The guards can measure the force of collisions experienced by players.

A study found symptoms were worse, and recovery was slower in adolescents (aged 11-19 years) who continued to play after suffering a concussion.

Sarah Gallagher, PT, DPT, NCS is the owner of South Valley Physical Therapy and is a member of the Vestibular Disorders Association, American Physical Therapy Association and Academy of Neurology. In her interview, she explains her center's operations and its role in telehealth.

A study by Todd W. Lyons et al. published in Frontiers of Neurology found racial differences in emergency room visits for children with sports-related head injuries.

Part of Harvard’s Football Players Health Study found an association between concussions suffered while playing in the NFL and low testosterone and erectile dysfunction later in life. Head trauma injuries to the pituitary gland likely cause low testosterone levels, and the authors believe that the results have implications for everyone who has experienced a head injury.

Melissa Martin, a former cheerleader at the University of California at Berkeley, has filed a lawsuit against the school, her coaches, and USA Cheer, for negligent treatment after being diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome.

A Washington Post article by James Ludden and Eben Novy-Williams discusses the impacts of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in sports. They also point out inconsistencies in the public’s reaction to CTE risk.

In a study published in Annals of Neurology, authors Jesse Mez et al. examined the brains of deceased athletes for evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and found that the risk of CTE approximately doubled for every 2.6 years spent playing American football.