Researchers comprehensively assess the safety of using your head in
youth soccer

Date:
May 24, 2023
Source:
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Summary:
Repeatedly heading a soccer ball has been previously associated with
negative long-term brain health for professional players. However,
a new study found that a small number of repeated soccer headers
equivalent to a throw-in did not cause immediate neurophysiological
deficits for teens, suggesting that limited soccer heading exposure
in youth sports may not result in irreversible harm if players
are properly trained.


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==========================================================================
FULL STORY ========================================================================== Repeatedly heading a soccer ball has been previously associated with
negative long-term brain health for professional players. However, in
a new study from researchers at the Minds Matter Concussion Program
at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), a small number of
repeated soccer headers equivalent to a throw-in did not cause immediate neurophysiological deficits for teens, suggesting that limited soccer
heading exposure in youth sports may not result in irreversible harm if
players are properly trained.

The findings, which represent the most comprehensive real-time study of
soccer headers in adolescent athletes, were published in the Journal of Biomechanical Engineering.

For some professional athletes, repeated head loading in sports -- using
your head as part of the game -- is associated with negative long-term
brain health even when there are no initial clinical symptoms. Despite the awareness of long-term consequences, short-term neurophysiological issues
after repeated head impacts like soccer heading are poorly understood in
youth athletes. Some studies have identified potential issues across an
entire sports season. This study examined the consequences of repeated
head impacts shortly after the heading exposure with a battery of
six different tests to examine a wider variety of potential clinical implications.

In 2015, the US Soccer Federation implemented limits on soccer headers for teens during practice -- no more than 30 minutes of header practice time
and no more than 15 to 20 headers per week. The English Premier League
also passed guidelines restricting the number of high-force headers to
10 in a single practice per week. This lab-based study simulated these
limits conducting 10 repeated soccer headers within a single session
with experienced teenage players. Based on their findings, researchers determined that this practice did not result in acute neurophysiological issues, as assessed by a comprehensive exam. The study did not assess
the safety of regular soccer headers over the course of a season or
scholastic career.

"Soccer is a sport where intentionally using your head to hit the ball
is an integral part of the game, and concern over its long-term effects
has parents, caregivers and coaches understandably concerned," said
first study author Colin Huber, PhD, a postdoctoral research fellow at
Emory University who conducted this research while with the Center for
Injury Research and Prevention (CIRP) at CHOP. "We wanted to simulate
these effects in a controlled laboratory setting and build upon the
work of prior studies to quantitatively assess the neurophysiological
effects of repeated soccer heading." In this study, 19 participants
(17 male, 2 female) between 13 and 18 years old were assigned to either
a frontal heading group (directing the ball back to where it came from),
an oblique heading group (directing the ball to the right) or a kicking
control group. These participants completed neurophysiological assessments immediately prior to, immediately after and approximately 24 hours after completing 10 headers or kicks. These assessments included multiple eye movement tracking, pupil response and balance tests.

The study ultimately found no neurophysiological issues in either group
when compared with the kicking control group, even when taking the six different assessments into account. However, oblique headers resulted in
higher levels of angular head motion. Angular motion is associated with concussions and other brain injuries, suggesting that players should
be properly trained to head the ball in a frontal fashion to reduce the
risk of injury.

"This study represents the most comprehensive examination of the acute neurophysiological effects of soccer headers on youth to date, providing
us with meaningful information regarding the safety of headers on the
field," said senior study author Kristy Arbogast, PhD, Co-Scientific
Director at CIRP and research director of the Minds Matter Concussion
Program at CHOP. "We need to be clear that there still may be long-term consequences for repeated soccer headers over the course of an athletic
career, but it appears that a small number of headers in a given session
does not pose an immediate risk to properly trained youth athletes."
This study was supported by the National Institute of Neurologic Disorders
and Stroke of the National Institutes of Health grant R01NS097549 and
internal funds from CHOP.

* RELATED_TOPICS
o Health_&_Medicine
# Sports_Medicine # Accident_and_Trauma # Teen_Health #
Chronic_Illness
o Mind_&_Brain
# Intelligence # Brain_Injury # Disorders_and_Syndromes
# Child_Psychology
* RELATED_TERMS
o Runner's_knee o Soccer o Football o Athletic_training o
Sports_medicine o Animal_cognition o Brain_damage o Emphysema

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
Children's_Hospital_of_Philadelphia. Note: Content may be edited for
style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Colin M. Huber, Declan A. Patton, Kathryn R. Rownd, Carlyn Patterson
Gentile, Christina L. Master, Kristy B. Arbogast. Neurophysiological
Effects of Repeated Soccer Heading in Youth. Journal of
Biomechanical Engineering, 2023; 145 (9) DOI: 10.1115/1.4062423 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230524181945.htm

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