Citation

Bellamkonda S, Woodward SJ, Campolettano E, Gellner R, Kelley ME, Jones DA, Genemaras A, Beckwith JG, Greenwald RM, Maerlender AC, Rowson S, Duma SM, Urban JE, Stitzel JD, Crisco JJ. J. Appl. Biomech. 2018; 34(5): 354-360.

Affiliation

Bioengineering Laboratory, Department of Orthopaedics, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Human Kinetics Publishers)

DOI

10.1123/jab.2017-0207

PMID

29651910

Abstract

This study aimed to compare head impact exposures between practices and games in football players ages 9 to 14, who account for approximately 70% of all football players in the US. Over a period of two seasons, 136 players were enrolled from three 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 50^th (95^th) percentile peak linear acceleration of 18.3 (46.9) g, peak rotational acceleration of 1305.4 (3316.6) rad·s^-2, and HITsp 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 < 0.001, r² = 0.52) 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 < 0.001). The youth football head impact data quantified in this study provides valuable insight into the player exposure profile, which should serve as a key baseline in efforts to reduce injury.

Keywords: American football

Language: en

Keywords

HIT system; impacts per game; impacts per practice; linear acceleration; rotational acceleration