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November 08, 2016
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Study finds brain changes may still occur in youth football players exposed to sub-concussive impact

In a study of male participants who played a season of youth football, researchers found changes in the brain as evidenced by MRI, even though players did not have a diagnosis of concussion.

“We do not know if there are important functional changes related to these findings, or if these effects will be associated with any negative long-term outcomes,” Christopher Whitlow, MD, PhD, MHA, said in a press release from the Radiological Society of North America. “Football is a physical sport, and players may have many physical changes after a season of play that completely resolve. These changes in the brain may also simply resolve with little consequence. However, more research is needed to understand the meaning of these changes to the long-term health of our youngest athletes.”

Whitlow and colleagues used the Head Impact Telemetry system to record head impact data for 25 male youth football players between the ages of 8 years and 13 years. Investigators evaluated participants before and after one season of play using neuroimaging, including diffusion tensor imaging. Participants were evaluated for seasonal fractional anisotropy (FA) changes in white matter tracts which included the inferior fronto-occipitial fasciculus (IFOF), inferior longitudinal fasciculus and the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), according to the study. Investigators divided the fiber tracts into a central core and two fiber terminals. They also assessed the association between seasonal FA change in whole fiber, core and fiber terminals and the combined probability risk-weighted cumulative exposure (RWECP).  None of the players included in the study had concussive signs or symptoms, according to the release.

Results showed RWECP and a decreased FA in the whole fiber, core and fiber terminal of the IFOF, had statistically significant linear relationships. Investigators noted findings for the right SLF trended toward significance. According to researchers, a decrease in FA in the right SLF terminal and the RWECP showed a statistically significant relationship. ‒ by Monica Jaramillo

 

Reference:

www.rsna.org

 

Disclosures: Whitlow reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.

 

Sources/Disclosures

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Source:

Bahrami N, et al. Radiology. 2017; doi:10.1148/radiol.2016160564.