scholarly journals Comparison of head impact exposure in practice drills among multiple youth football teams

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 381-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mireille E. Kelley ◽  
Mark A. Espeland ◽  
William C. Flood ◽  
Alexander K. Powers ◽  
Christopher T. Whitlow ◽  
...  

OBJECTIVELimiting contact in football practice can reduce the number of head impacts a player receives, but further research is needed to inform the modification of optimal drills that mitigate head impact exposure (HIE) while the player develops the skills needed to safely play the game. This study aimed to compare HIE in practice drills among 6 youth football teams and to evaluate the effect of a team on HIE.METHODSOn-field head impact data were collected from athletes (ages 10–13 years) playing on 6 local youth football teams (teams A–F) during all practices using the Head Impact Telemetry System. Video was recorded and analyzed to verify and assign impacts to a specific drill. Drills were identified as follows: dummy/sled tackling, half install, install, install walk through, multiplayer tackle, Oklahoma, one-on-one, open field tackling, other, passing, position skill work, scrimmage, special teams, tackling drill stations, and technique. HIE was quantified in terms of impacts per player per minute (ppm) and peak linear and rotational head acceleration. Generalized linear models were used to assess differences in head impact magnitude and frequency among drills as well as among teams within the most common drills.RESULTSAmong 67 athlete-seasons, a total of 14,718 impacts during contact practices were collected and evaluated in this study. Among all 6 teams, the mean linear (p < 0.0001) and rotational (p < 0.0001) acceleration varied significantly among all drills. Open field tackling had significantly (p < 0.001) higher mean linear acceleration than all other drills. Multiplayer tackle had the highest mean impact rate (0.35 ppm). Significant variations in linear acceleration and impact rate were observed among teams within specific drills. Team A had the highest mean linear acceleration in install, one-on-one, and open field tackling and the highest mean impact rate in Oklahoma and position skill work. Although team A spent the greatest proportion of their practice on minimal- or no-player versus player contact drills (27%) compared to other teams, they had the highest median (20.2g) and 95th percentile (56.4g) linear acceleration in practice.CONCLUSIONSFull-speed tackling and blocking drills resulted in the highest HIE. Reducing time spent on contact drills relative to minimal or no contact drills may not lower overall HIE. Instead, interventions such as reducing the speed of players engaged in contact, correcting tackling technique, and progressing to contact may reduce HIE more effectively.

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 489-497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mireille E. Kelley ◽  
Joeline M. Kane ◽  
Mark A. Espeland ◽  
Logan E. Miller ◽  
Alexander K. Powers ◽  
...  

OBJECTIVEThis study evaluated the frequency, magnitude, and location of head impacts in practice drills within a youth football team to determine how head impact exposure varies among different types of drills.METHODSOn-field head impact data were collected from athletes participating in a youth football team for a single season. Each athlete wore a helmet instrumented with a Head Impact Telemetry (HIT) System head acceleration measurement device during all preseason, regular season, and playoff practices. Video was recorded for all practices, and video analysis was performed to verify head impacts and assign each head impact to a specific drill. Eleven drills were identified: dummy/sled tackling, install, special teams, Oklahoma, one-on-one, open-field tackling, passing, position skill work, multiplayer tackle, scrimmage, and tackling drill stations. Generalized linear models were fitted to log-transformed data, and Wald tests were used to assess differences in head accelerations and impact rates.RESULTSA total of 2125 impacts were measured during 30 contact practices in 9 athletes (mean age 11.1 ± 0.6 years, mean mass 44.9 ± 4.1 kg). Open-field tackling had the highest median and 95th percentile linear accelerations (24.7g and 97.8g, respectively) and resulted in significantly higher mean head accelerations than several other drills. The multiplayer tackle drill resulted in the highest head impact frequency, with an average of 0.59 impacts per minute per athlete, but the lowest 95th percentile linear accelerations of all drills. The front of the head was the most common impact location for all drills except dummy/sled tackling.CONCLUSIONSHead impact exposure varies significantly in youth football practice drills, with several drills exposing athletes to high-magnitude and/or high-frequency head impacts. These data suggest that further study of practice drills is an important step in developing evidence-based recommendations for modifying or eliminating certain high-intensity drills to reduce head impact exposure and injury risk for all levels of play.


2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 354-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Srinidhi Bellamkonda ◽  
Samantha J. Woodward ◽  
Eamon Campolettano ◽  
Ryan Gellner ◽  
Mireille E. Kelley ◽  
...  

This study aimed to compare head impact exposures between practices and games in football players ages 9 to 14 years, who account for approximately 70% of all football players in the United States. Over a period of 2 seasons, 136 players were enrolled from 3 youth programs, and 49,847 head impacts were recorded from 345 practices and 137 games. During the study, individual players sustained a median of 211 impacts per season, with a maximum of 1226 impacts. Players sustained 50th (95th) percentile peak linear acceleration of 18.3 (46.9) g, peak rotational acceleration of 1305.4 (3316.6) rad·s−2, and Head Impact Technology Severity Profile of 13.7 (24.3), respectively. Overall, players with a higher frequency of head impacts at practices recorded a higher frequency of head impacts at games (P < .001,r2 = .52), and players who sustained a greater average magnitude of head impacts during practice also recorded a greater average magnitude of head impacts during games (P < .001). The youth football head impact data quantified in this study provide valuable insight into the player exposure profile, which should serve as a key baseline in efforts to reduce injury.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Kercher ◽  
Jesse A. Steinfeldt ◽  
Jonathan T. Macy ◽  
Keisuke Ejima ◽  
Keisuke Kawata

ABSTRACTPurposeUSA Football established five levels of contact (LOC) to guide the intensity of high school football practices. However, it remains unclear whether head impact exposure differs by LOC. The purpose of this study was to examine head impact frequency and magnitude by LOC in the overall sample and three position groups.MethodsThis longitudinal observational study included 24 high school football players during all practices and games in the 2019 season. Players wore a sensor-installed mouthguard that monitored head impact frequency, peak linear acceleration (PLA), and rotational head acceleration (PRA). Practice/game drills were filmed and categorized into 5 LOCs (air, bags, control, thud, live), and head impact data were assigned into 5 LOCs. Player position was categorized into linemen, hybrid, and skill.ResultsA total of 6016 head impacts were recorded during 5 LOCs throughout the season. In the overall sample, total number of impacts, sum of PLA, and PRA per player increased in an incremental manner (air<bags<control<thud<live), with the most head impacts in live (113.7±17.8 hits/player) and the least head impacts in air (7.7±1.9 hits/player). The linemen and hybrid groups had consistently higher impact exposure than the skill group. Average head impact magnitudes by position group were higher during live drills (PLA (41.0-45.9g) and PRA (3.3-4.6 krad/s2) per head impact), whereas other LOCs had lower magnitudes (PLA (18.2-23.2g) and PRA (1.6-2.3krad/s2) per impact).ConclusionOur data suggest that LOC may influence cumulative head impact exposure in high school football, with players incurring frequent head impacts during live, thud, and control. The data indicate the importance of considering LOCs to refine practice guidelines and policies to minimize head impact burden in high school football athletes.


2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (9) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray W. Daniel ◽  
Steven Rowson ◽  
Stefan M. Duma

The head impact exposure experienced by football players at the college and high school levels has been well documented; however, there are limited data regarding youth football despite its dramatically larger population. The objective of this study was to investigate head impact exposure in middle school football. Impacts were monitored using a commercially available accelerometer array installed inside the helmets of 17 players aged 12–14 years. A total of 4678 impacts were measured, with an average (±standard deviation) of 275 ± 190 impacts per player. The average of impact distributions for each player had a median impact of 22 ± 2 g and 954 ± 122 rad/s2, and a 95th percentile impact of 54 ± 9 g and 2525 ± 450 rad/s2. Similar to the head impact exposure experienced by high school and collegiate players, these data show that middle school football players experience a greater number of head impacts during games than practices. There were no significant differences between median and 95th percentile head acceleration magnitudes experienced during games and practices; however, a larger number of impacts greater than 80 g occurred during games than during practices. Impacts to the front and back of the helmet were most common. Overall, these data are similar to high school and college data that have been collected using similar methods. These data have applications toward youth football helmet design, the development of strategies designed to limit head impact exposure, and child-specific brain injury criteria.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 604-612 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eamon T. Campolettano ◽  
Ryan A. Gellner ◽  
Steven Rowson

OBJECTIVEEven in the absence of a clinically diagnosed concussion, research suggests that neurocognitive changes may develop in football players as a result of frequent head impacts that occur during football games and practices. The objectives of this study were to determine the specific situations in which high-magnitude impacts (accelerations exceeding 40g) occur in youth football games and practices and to assess how representative practice activities are of games with regard to high-magnitude head impact exposure.METHODSA total of 45 players (mean age 10.7 ± 1.1 years) on 2 youth teams (Juniors [mean age 9.9 ± 0.6 years; mean body mass 38.9 ± 9.9 kg] and Seniors [mean age 11.9 ± 0.6 years; mean body mass 51.4 ± 11.8 kg]) wore helmets instrumented with accelerometer arrays to record head impact accelerations for all practices and games. Video recordings from practices and games were used to verify all high-magnitude head impacts, identify specific impact characteristics, and determine the amount of time spent in each activity.RESULTSA total of 7590 impacts were recorded, of which 571 resulted in high-magnitude head impact accelerations exceeding 40g (8%). Impacts were characterized based on the position played by the team member who received the impact, the part of the field where the impact occurred, whether the impact occurred during a game or practice play, and the cause of the impact. High-magnitude impacts occurred most frequently in the open field in both games (59.4%) and practices (67.5%). “Back” position players experienced a greater proportion of high-magnitude head impacts than players at other positions. The 2 teams in this study structured their practice sessions similarly with respect to time spent in each drill, but impact rates differed for each drill between the teams.CONCLUSIONSHigh-magnitude head impact exposure in games and practice drills was quantified and used as the basis for comparison of exposure in the 2 settings. In this cohort, game impact rates exceeded those for practice. Back players, who were often positioned in the open field, were shown to experience elevated levels of head impact exposure relative to players at other positions. The analysis also suggests that practice intensity, which may be influenced by coaching style, may also affect high-magnitude head impact exposure. Future studies should investigate this aspect as a factor affecting head impact exposure.


2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 536-541 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eamon T. Campolettano ◽  
Steven Rowson ◽  
Stefan M. Duma

OBJECTIVE Although 70% of football players in the United States are youth players (6–14 years old), most research on head impacts in football has focused on high school, collegiate, or professional populations. The objective of this study was to identify the specific activities associated with high-magnitude (acceleration > 40g) head impacts in youth football practices. METHODS A total of 34 players (mean age 9.9 ± 0.6 years) on 2 youth teams were equipped with helmet-mounted accelerometer arrays that recorded head accelerations associated with impacts in practices and games. Videos of practices and games were used to verify all head impacts and identify specific drills associated with each head impact. RESULTS A total of 6813 impacts were recorded, of which 408 had accelerations exceeding 40g (6.0%). For each type of practice drill, impact rates were computed that accounted for the length of time that teams spent on each drill. The tackling drill King of the Circle had the highest impact rate (95% CI 25.6–68.3 impacts/hr). Impact rates for tackling drills (those conducted without a blocker [95% CI 14.7–21.9 impacts/hr] and those with a blocker [95% CI 10.5–23.1 impacts/hr]) did not differ from game impact rates (95% CI 14.2–21.6 impacts/hr). Tackling drills were observed to have a greater proportion (between 40% and 50%) of impacts exceeding 60g than games (25%). The teams in this study participated in tackling or blocking drills for only 22% of their overall practice times, but these drills were responsible for 86% of all practice impacts exceeding 40g. CONCLUSIONS In youth football, high-magnitude impacts occur more often in practices than games, and some practice drills are associated with higher impact rates and accelerations than others. To mitigate high-magnitude head impact exposure in youth football, practices should be modified to decrease the time spent in drills with high impact rates, potentially eliminating a drill such as King of the Circle altogether.


Author(s):  
Eamon T Campolettano ◽  
Steven Rowson

A youth-specific football helmet testing standard has been proposed to address the physical and biomechanical differences between adult and youth football players. This study sought to relate the proposed youth standard-defined laboratory impacts to on-field head impacts collected from youth football players. Head impact data from 112 youth football players (ages 9–14) were collected through the use of helmet-mounted accelerometer arrays. These head impacts were filtered to only include those that resided in corridors near prescribed National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) impact locations. Peak linear head acceleration and peak rotational head acceleration magnitudes collected from pneumatic ram impactor tests as specified by the proposed NOCSAE youth standard were compared to the distribution of on-field head impacts. All laboratory impact tests were among the top 10% in terms of magnitude for Severity Index and peak rotational acceleration of matched location head impacts experienced by youth football players. As concussive head impacts are among the most severe impacts experienced on the field, a safety standard geared toward mitigating concussion should assess the most severe on-field head impacts. This proposed testing standard may be refined as more becomes known regarding the biomechanics of concussion among youth athletes.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 2325967119S0000
Author(s):  
Landon B. Lempke ◽  
A. Faith Bartello ◽  
Melissa N. Anderson ◽  
Rachel S. Johnson ◽  
Julianne D. Schmidt ◽  
...  

Background: There is growing fear among healthcare professionals and parents regarding youth tackle football, likely due to highly publicized concerns about potential long-term physical and cognitive health of professional football players. Parents and advocacy groups are pushing for state legislation to ban youth tackle football in favor of flag football to avoid repetitive head impacts that are potentially associated with late-life cognitive deficits. Although the head impact burden experienced during flag football is likely lower than tackle, no research has compared head impact exposure between youth tackle and flag football. Therefore, our purpose was to examine head impact exposure and magnitudes between youth tackle and flag football players. Methods: Twenty-seven tackle (age=11.0±1.5y, height=145.8±11.9 cm, mass=45.0±14.9 kg) and 29 flag football players (age=8.6±1.1y, height=133.9±8.4 cm, mass=33.9±9.5 kg) were enrolled in this prospective cohort study. Participants were fitted with head impact sensors (Triax Sim-G) worn throughout the entire 2017 season that recorded impact frequency and magnitude (linear [g] and rotational acceleration [rad/s2]). Athlete exposure was defined as one player participating in one session. Impact rates (IR) were calculated as impacts per one athlete exposure. Game, practice, and combined IR were compared between groups using impact rate ratios (IRR). IRR with 95% confidence intervals (CI) not containing 1.0 were considered statistically significant. Acceleration values were binned into low- and high-magnitude categories (linear split at 40 g, rotational split at 4,600rad/s2). Magnitude category frequencies were compared between groups using Chi-square test of association (p<0.05), and 90th percentile acceleration values are presented. Results: One-thousand nine-hundred and eight tackle (735 game, 1173 practice; 70.66 impacts/player) and 169 flag (101 game, 68 practice; 5.83 impacts/player) football head impacts were recorded. Tackle players experienced a higher impact rate during games versus practices (IRR=1.41; 95%CI:1.29 -1.55) while flag players experienced a lower impact rate (IRR=0.60; 95%CI:0.44-0.81). Practice and game head impacts combined resulted in tackle players (IR=3.06) accruing 4.61 times the impact rate (95%CI:3.94-5.40) of flag players (IR=0.66). Tackle players sustained a significantly greater head impact rate than flag players during games (tackle IR=3.83, flag IR=0.55; IRR=6.90; 95%CI:5.60-8.49) and practices (tackle IR=2.72, flag IR=0.93; IRR=2.91; 95%CI:2.28-3.72). Tackle 90th percentile linear acceleration was 53.32 g (median=32.50 g) and flag was 53.32 g (median=32.65 g). Tackle 90th percentile rotational acceleration was 7,000 rad/s2 (median=3,200rad/s2) while flag was 8,300 rad/s2 (median=4,100rad/s2). Tackle experienced a significantly higher frequency of low-magnitude rotational acceleration impacts (71.6% vs. 57.4%) and lower frequency of high-magnitude impacts than flag (28.4% vs 42.6%;?2=15.15, p<0.001). There were no significant associations for linear acceleration (p=0.75). Conclusions/Significance: Our results indicate youth flag football head impact rates are 82%-88% lower compared to tackle. Contrary to general belief, youth flag football players experienced numerous head impacts with a greater tendency for high-magnitude rotational acceleration head impacts. Although fewer head impacts occur during youth flag football, parents and coaches should be aware that head impacts do occur during practices and games. Whether high-magnitude or high-frequency head impacts influence long-term health remains unknown. Our findings provide novel evidence into the head impact exposure occurring during youth tackle and flag football. Longitudinal studies examining head impact biomechanics and advanced neuroimaging in youth tackle and flag football players nationwide is warranted to ensure long term cognitive health.


2021 ◽  
pp. 036354652110117
Author(s):  
Kelly Sarmiento ◽  
Dana Waltzman ◽  
Owen Devine ◽  
Xinjian Zhang ◽  
Lara DePadilla ◽  
...  

Background: Interventions designed to reduce the risk for head impacts and concussion in youth football have increased over the past decade; however, understanding of the role of regular game play on head impact exposure among youth tackle and flag football athletes is currently limited. Purpose: To explore head impact exposure among youth tackle and flag football athletes (age range, 6-14 years) during both practices and games. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods: Using the Vector MouthGuard sensor, the authors collected head impact data from 524 tackle and flag youth football athletes over the course of a football season. Quantities of interest were estimated from regression models using Bayesian methods. Results: For impacts ≥10 g, a tackle football athlete had an estimated 17.55 (95% CI, 10.78-28.96) times more head impacts per practice compared with a flag football athlete (6.85 [95% CI, 6.05-7.76] and 0.39 [95% CI, 0.24-0.62] head impacts, respectively). Additionally, a tackle football athlete had an estimated 19.48 (95% CI, 12.74-29.98) times more head impacts per game compared with a flag football athlete (13.59 [95% CI, 11.97-15.41] and 0.70 [95% CI, 0.46-1.05] head impacts, respectively). Among tackle football athletes, the estimated average impact rate was 6.51 (95% CI, 5.75-7.37) head impacts during a practice and 12.97 (95% CI, 11.36-14.73) impacts during a game, resulting in 2.00 (95% CI, 1.74-2.29) times more ≥10 g head impacts in games versus practices. Tackle football athletes had 2.06 (95% CI, 1.80-2.34) times more high-magnitude head impacts (≥40 g) during a game than during a practice. On average, flag football athletes experienced an estimated 0.37 (95% CI, 0.20-0.60) head impacts during a practice and 0.77 (95% CI, 0.53-1.06) impacts during a game, resulting in 2.06 (95% CI, 1.29-3.58) times more ≥10 g head impacts in games versus practices. Because of model instability caused by a large number of zero impacts for flag football athletes, a comparison of high-magnitude head impacts is not reported for practices or games. Conclusion: This study provides a characterization of the head impact exposure of practices and games among a large population of youth tackle and flag football athletes aged 6 to 14 years. These findings suggest that a greater focus on game-based interventions, such as fair play interventions and strict officiating, may be beneficial to reduce head impact exposures for youth football athletes.


2018 ◽  
Vol 140 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Logan E. Miller ◽  
Calvin Kuo ◽  
Lyndia C. Wu ◽  
Jillian E. Urban ◽  
David B. Camarillo ◽  
...  

Head impact exposure in popular contact sports is not well understood, especially in the youth population, despite recent advances in impact-sensing technology which has allowed widespread collection of real-time head impact data. Previous studies indicate that a custom-instrumented mouthpiece is a superior method for collecting accurate head acceleration data. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of mounting a sensor device inside an acrylic retainer form factor to measure six-degrees-of-freedom (6DOF) head kinematic response. This study compares 6DOF mouthpiece kinematics at the head center of gravity (CG) to kinematics measured by an anthropomorphic test device (ATD). This study found that when instrumentation is mounted in the rigid retainer form factor, there is good coupling with the upper dentition and highly accurate kinematic results compared to the ATD. Peak head kinematics were correlated with r2 > 0.98 for both rotational velocity and linear acceleration and r2 = 0.93 for rotational acceleration. These results indicate that a rigid retainer-based form factor is an accurate and promising method of collecting head impact data. This device can be used to study head impacts in helmeted contact sports such as football, hockey, and lacrosse as well as nonhelmeted sports such as soccer and basketball. Understanding the magnitude and frequency of impacts sustained in various sports using an accurate head impact sensor, such as the one presented in this study, will improve our understanding of head impact exposure and sports-related concussion.


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