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Limiting full contact for high school football practice reduced concussions

WASHINGTON — A state interscholastic athletic association rule change limiting the amount of full contact practice time for high school football players was found to reduce instances of sport related concussions, according to data presented at the 2015 AAP National Conference and Exhibition.

“This study confirms what athletic trainers who work with high school football programs have long believed regarding the association of full contact drills or practices and the likelihood a player will sustain a concussion,” Timothy A. McGuine, PhD, senior scientist for the Sports Medicine Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, said in a press release. “This is probably also true for other football injuries such as sprains, fractures and dislocations.”

Defining “full contact” as drills when game-comparable speed tackles are made and players are taken to the ground, the new athletic rule prohibited the amount of full contact in which players could participate to:

• No contact during week 1;
• 75 minutes of contact during week 2, and;
• 60 minutes for every week following.

McGuine and colleagues evaluated 2,081 high school football players during the 2012 and 2013 football seasons, before the rule when into effect. Following the introduction of the new rule, an additional 945 players were studied during the 2014 season.

While players self-reported previous concussion and demographic information, licensed athletic trainers recorded incidence and severity for each sport-related concussion. The researchers used chi-square tests to compare incidence of sport-related concussion prior to the mandated rule in the2012/2013 seasons with incidence following rule implementation in the 2014 season.

Results demonstrated that during the 2012-2013 seasons, 206 players sustained 211 sports-related concussions, compared with only 67 players and 70 sports-related concussions in the 2014 season. The rate of sports-related concussions decreased after the rule went into effect, from 1.57 per 1000 athletic exposures in the pre-rule period, to 1.28 per 1000 athletic exposures (P = .155).

The researchers noted that tackling was the primary cause of sports related concussions, making up 46% of all concussions reported.

“Educating high school coaches to limit the amount of full contact would be an effective and economical way to help protect students from head injuries,” McGuine said. – by David Costill

Reference:
McGuine TA. #31701. Presented at: 2015 AAP National Conference and Exhibition; Oct. 23-27; Washington D.C.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.