Citation

Enniss TM, Basiouny K, Brewer B, Bugaev N, Cheng J, Danner OK, Duncan T, Foster S, Hawryluk G, Jung HS, Lui F, Rattan R, Violano P, Crandall M. Trauma Surg. Acute Care Open 2018; 3(1): e000153.

Affiliation

Department of Surgery, University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville, Jacksonville, Florida, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, The author(s) and the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Publisher BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/tsaco-2017-000153

PMID

30023433

PMCID

PMC6018851

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Awareness of the magnitude of contact sports-related concussions has risen exponentially in recent years. Our objective is to conduct a prospectively registered systematic review of the scientific evidence regarding interventions to prevent contact sports-related concussions.

METHODS: Using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology, we performed a systematic review of the literature to answer seven population, intervention, comparator, and outcomes (PICO) questions regarding concussion education, head protective equipment, rules prohibiting high-risk activity and neck strengthening exercise for prevention of contact sports-related concussion in pediatric and adult amateur athletes. A query of MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and Embase was performed. Letters to the editor, case reports, book chapters, and review articles were excluded, and all articles reviewed were written in English.

RESULTS: Thirty-one studies met the inclusion criteria and were applicable to our PICO questions. Conditional recommendations are made supporting preventive interventions concussion education and rules prohibiting high-risk activity for both pediatric and adult amateur athletes and neck strengthening exercise in adult amateur athletes. Strong recommendations are supported for head protective equipment in both pediatric and adult amateur athletes. Strong recommendations regarding newer football helmet technology in adult amateur athletes and rules governing the implementation of body-checking in youth ice hockey are supported.

CONCLUSION: Despite increasing scientific attention to sports-related concussion, studies evaluating preventive interventions remain relatively sparse. This systematic review serves as a call to focus research on primary prevention strategies for sports-related concussion. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IV. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: #42016043019.

Keywords: American football

Language: en

Keywords

Brain Concussion; athletic injuries; injury prevention; mild traumatic brain injury