Abstract
BackgroundThe epidemiology of sports-related concussion is not well-described in the literature. This paper presents a descriptive epidemiology of concussion in seven high school and collegiate sports.MethodsWe used the data from Concussion Prevention Initiative (CPI), which enrolled 8905 athletes at 210 high schools and 26 colleges in a prospective cohort study of 7 sports (football, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s lacrosse, and men’s and women’s ice hockey) between 1999 and 2001. Injury risks and injury rates were used to characterize the incidence of concussion, and changes in symptoms over time were described.ResultsA total of 375 concussions were observed. The incidence of concussion was highest in football, followed by women’s lacrosse, men’s lacrosse, men’s soccer, and women’s soccer (only 10 ice hockey teams were included, too few to quantify incidence). The rate of incident concussion was strongly associated with history of concussion in the previous 24 months (rate ratio = 5.5; 95 %CI: 3.9, 7.8, for 2 or more concussions relative to no previous concussion). The most common symptoms at time of injury were headache (87 %), balance problems/dizziness (77 %), and feeling “in a fog” (62 %). Loss of consciousness and amnesia were present in relatively few cases (9 and 30 %). The most common mechanism of injury was collision with another player.ConclusionsSports-related concussions present with a diverse range of symptoms and are associated with previous concussion history.
Highlights
The epidemiology of sports-related concussion is not well-described in the literature
The study followed an approximately equal number of football, men’s soccer, and women’s soccer teams—approximately 100 in each sport—but the number of athletes followed was much greater in football than any other sport, due to the larger team size in football (Table 1)
The incidence of concussion was highest in football, followed by women’s lacrosse, men’s lacrosse, men’s soccer, and women’s soccer (Tables 2–4)
Summary
The epidemiology of sports-related concussion is not well-described in the literature. This paper presents a descriptive epidemiology of concussion in seven high school and collegiate sports. The signs and symptoms of the injury are very subjective and may go unrecognized or unreported (McCrea et al 2004). They can range from (in the most severe cases) impairments in cognitive functioning that may last for months through to (in the less severe and more typical cases) headaches, concentration problems, and dizziness that resolves within a week (Guskiewicz et al 2004). This typically means removing the athlete from competition until the clinician determines that his/her symptoms have resolved
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