Helmet Fit and Cervical Spine Motion in Collegiate Men's Lacrosse Athletes Secured to a Spine Board

Abstract

Proper management of cervical spine injuries in men's lacrosse players depends in part upon the ability of the helmet to immobilize the head. To determine if properly and improperly fitted lacrosse helmets provide adequate stabilization of the head in the spine-boarded athlete. Crossover study. Sports medicine research laboratory. Eighteen healthy collegiate men's lacrosse players. Participants were asked to move their heads through 3 planes of motion after being secured to a spine board under 3 helmet conditions. Change in range of motion in the cervical spine was calculated for the sagittal, frontal, and transverse planes for both head-to-thorax and helmet-to-thorax range of motion in all 3 helmet conditions (properly fitted, improperly fitted, and no helmet). Head-to-thorax range of motion with the properly fitted and improperly fitted helmets was greater than in the no-helmet condition (P < .0001). In the sagittal plane, range of motion was greater with the improperly fitted helmet than with the properly fitted helmet. No difference was observed in helmet-to-thorax range of motion between properly and improperly fitted helmet conditions. Head-to-thorax range of motion was greater than helmet-to-thorax range of motion in all 3 planes (P < .0001). Cervical spine motion was minimized the most in the no-helmet condition, indicating that in lacrosse players, unlike football players, the helmet may need to be removed before stabilization.