Abstract
Objectives
The purpose of this study was to determine sex differences in recovery trajectories of assessments for sport-related concussion using Concussion Assessment, Research and Education (CARE) Consortium data.
Methods
National Collegiate Athletic Association athletes (N = 906; 61% female) from sex-comparable sports completed a pre-season baseline assessment and post-sport-related concussion assessments within 6 h of injury, 24–48 h, when they initiated their return to play progression, when they were cleared for unrestricted return to play, and 6 months post-injury. Assessments included the Standardized Assessment of Concussion, Balance Error Scoring System, Brief Symptom Inventory-18, Immediate Post-concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT), Sport Concussion Assessment Tool-3 symptom evaluation, Clinical Reaction Time, King–Devick test, Vestibular Ocular Motor Screen, 12-item Short-Form Health Survey, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Satisfaction with Life Scale.
Results
Only the Vestibular Ocular Motor Screen Total Symptom Score at the 24–48 h timepoint (p = 0.005) was statistically significantly different between sexes. Specifically, female athletes (mean = 60.2, 95% confidence interval [CI] 51.5–70.4) had higher Vestibular Ocular Motor Screen Total Symptom Scores than male athletes (mean = 36.9, 95% CI 27.6–49.3), but this difference resolved by the time of return-to-play initiation (female athletes, mean = 1.8, 95% CI 1.1–2.9; male athletes, mean = 4.1, 95% CI 1.5–10.9).
Conclusions
Sport-related concussion recovery trajectories for most assessments were similar for female and male National Collegiate Athletic Association athletes except for Vestibular Ocular Motor Screen symptoms within 48 h of sport-related concussion, which was greater in female athletes. Female athletes had a greater symptom burden across all timepoints, suggesting that cross-sectional observations may indicate sex differences despite similar recovery trajectories.
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Acknowledgements
CARE Consortium Investigators Include: April Hoy, MS, ATC, CSCS (Azusa Pacific University); Justus D. Ortega, PhD (California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt); Nicholas Port, PhD (Indiana University); Patrick G. O’Donnell, MHA, MBA (UMass Memorial Health); Christopher D’Lauro, PhD (United States Air Force Academy); Kenneth L. Cameron, PhD, MPH, ATC (US Military Academy); Joshua T. Goldman, MD, MBA (University of California, Los Angeles); Holly J. Benjamin, MD (University of Chicago); Thomas W. Kaminski, PhD, ATC (University of Delaware); Julianne Schmidt, PhD, ATC (University of Georgia); Michael Collins, PhD (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center); Jeffrey J. Bazarian, MD, MPH (University of Rochester); Stefan Duma, PhD (Virginia Tech).
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Data collection and sharing for this project was conducted with support from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Department of Defense (DOD). The US Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, 820 Chandler Street, Fort Detrick MD 21702-5014, USA is the awarding and administering acquisition office. This work was supported by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, through the Combat Casualty Care Research Program, endorsed by the Department of Defense, through the Joint Program Committee 6/Combat Casualty Care Research Program—Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Program under Award No. W81XWH1420151. Opinions, interpretations, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the authors and are not necessarily endorsed by the Department of Defense.
Conflict of interest
James R. Clugston receives research support from the National Football League. Margot Putukian is the Chief Medical Officer for Major League Soccer, Senior Advisor National Football League Head, Neck & Spine Committee, Football Association Research Task Force, Concussion in Sport Group Expert Group, and the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment Scientific Advisory Committee. Steven P. Broglio has current or past research funding from the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Defense—USA Medical Research Acquisition Activity, NCAA, National Athletic Trainers’ Association Foundation, National Football League, Under Armour, GE, Simbex, and ElmindA. He has consulted for US Soccer, US Cycling, University of Calgary SHRed Concussions external advisory board, and medico-legal litigation. He is a co-author of “Biomechanics of Injury (3rd edition)” and has a patent on “Brain Metabolism Monitoring Through CCO Measurements Using All-Fiber-Integrated Super-Continuum Source” (U.S. 11,529,091 B2). Thomas W. McAllister receives grant support for concussion research studies from the NCAA, the US DOD, and the National Institutes of Health. He also receives royalties for a traumatic brain injury textbook from American Psychiatric Association Publishing, Inc. Michael McCrea receives research funding to the Medical College of Wisconsin from the National Institutes of Health, Department of Veterans Affairs, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, DOD, NCAA, National Football League, and Abbott Laboratories. He receives book royalties from Oxford University Press. He serves as a clinical consultant to Milwaukee Bucks, Milwaukee Brewers, and Green Bay Packers, and is Co-Director of the NFL Neuropsychology Consultants without compensation. He serves as a consultant for Neurotrauma Sciences, Inc.
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The local institutional review board at each of the performance sites and the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command Human Research Protection Office reviewed and approved all study procedures.
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Author contributions
JBC designed and conceptualized the secondary analyses, analyzed the data, and drafted and revised the manuscript for intellectual content. CLM led the CARE sex differences working group, designed and conceptualized these secondary analyses, and revised the manuscript for intellectual content. TAB, SPDC, JRC, JTE, EE, SH, TNH, DJ, LAK, TDL, LBL, JMc, AKM AEM, SMP, MP, PRR, and AS designed and conceptualized the secondary analyses and revised the manuscript for intellectual content. SPB, TWMc, MMc, and PFP designed and conceptualized the overall CARE Consortium study and revised the manuscript for intellectual content. CE designed and conceptualized the secondary analyses, and drafted and revised the manuscript for intellectual content. All CARE Consortium Investigators played a major role in the acquisition of the data and revised the manuscript for intellectual content. All authors approved the manuscript.
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The CARE Consortium datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available in the FITBIR repository (https://fitbir.nih.gov/).
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The members of the “CARE Consortium Investigators” are processed under Acknowledgements section.
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Caccese, J.B., Master, C.L., Buckley, T.A. et al. Sex Differences in Recovery Trajectories of Assessments for Sport-Related Concussion Among NCAA Athletes: A CARE Consortium Study. Sports Med (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01982-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01982-2