Abstract
Weaker neck strength has been suggested as a potential risk factor of sport related concussion in female soccer athletes. The purpose of this study was to examine sex differences in neck muscle strength characteristics in multiple directions. A total of 52 high school soccer players (17 Females/35 Males) with no history of concussion participated. Subjects were instructed to perform three maximum voluntary isometric contractions for eight directions: flexion, right / left diagonal flexion, right/left lateral flexion, right/left diagonal extension, and extension. Peak force, normalized peak force, force steadiness, force ratio, and rate of force development were calculated and used for statistical analyses.
Highlights
Sports-related concussion (SRC) is one of the most common injuries among young and athletic individuals with an estimated 1.6 - 3.8 million occurrences each year in the United States [1]
We have examined effects of a SRC history on neck force steadiness among high school football players; contrary to the hypothesis, no significant differences in CoV were observed between the players with and without a SRC history [22]
These results were consistent with a previous study that reported sex differences in absolute and normalized peak force in flexion, extension and lateral flexion directions [17]
Summary
Sports-related concussion (SRC) is one of the most common injuries among young and athletic individuals with an estimated 1.6 - 3.8 million occurrences each year in the United States [1]. Female athletes have 1.4 times higher rates of SRC compared to male counterparts based on the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance database [2] This sex discrepancy is in part related to sex differences in reporting behaviors as female athletes are more likely to report occurrences and symptoms of SRC [3,4]. Several potential factors have been identified to explain this sex difference: neck anthropometric parameters, neck muscular strength, types of sport/activities, and a history of SRC [5,6,7,8] Among these factors, neck muscle strength characteristics are modifiable through exercise-based interventions and play an important role in management of SRC in youth athletes [9]. American football players with stronger neck muscles and larger muscle size had higher, odds of sustaining moderate linear head impacts when com-
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