Principal Investigator: Timothy A. McGuine PhD ATC, Senior Scientist
Institution: University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Abstract: High school soccer is a very popular sport, with over one million male and female participants annually nationwide. An estimated 87,000 Sport Related Concussions (SRC) occur in U.S. high school soccer athletes each year. Despite the high incidence of SRC in this population, little is known about equipment that is being marketed to players and coaches with claims that it reduces a player’s susceptibility to SRC. There have been no prospective randomized, controlled trials to examine the effect of soccer headgear on the incidence and severity of SRC in high school soccer players. The proposed study will fill this important gap by evaluating the effectiveness of soccer headgear in reducing the risk of SRC in high school adolescent soccer players.
Aim: To determine if protective soccer headgear reduces the incidence or severity of sport-related concussion in high school soccer players.
Publication:
McGuine, T, Post E, Yakuro Pfaller A, et al. “Does soccer headgear reduce the incidence of sport-related concussion? A cluster, randomised controlled trial of adolescent athletes.” Br. J. Sports Med (2019).