@article{ref1,
title="Incidence and risk factors in concussion events: a 5-season study in the French top 14 rugby union championship",
journal="American journal of sports medicine",
year="2021",
author="Chéradame, Jérémy and Piscione, Julien and Carling, Christopher and Guinoiseau, Jean-Pierre and Dufour, Bernard and Jacqmin-Gadda, Hélène and Decq, Philippe",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="ePub-ePub",
abstract="BACKGROUND: Concussions are a source of major concern in rugby, and a limited number of studies have attempted to identify risk factors for these injuries. <br><br>PURPOSE: To investigate the incidence of match concussion and associated risk factors, including individual workload, anthropometric variables, playing position, and season phase, in elite rugby union players. STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study; Level of evidence 3. <br><br>METHODS: All concussions and explanatory variables were collected for every match over 5 consecutive seasons (2014-2018) in 1334 professional players participating in the French Top 14 championship. Concussion risk was estimated using mixed effects Poisson regression. <br><br>RESULTS: Mean match concussion incidence equated to 10.4 (95% CI, 9.3-11.5) concussions for 1000 hours of game exposure. A peak was reached in the 2016-2017 season (13.7; 95% CI, 11.0-16.5). A greater risk was observed in the playoffs as compared with the first phase of the season (incidence rate ratio, 3.96; 95% CI, 2.10-7.35). In comparison with other positions, half-backs incurred the highest rate of concussion events (incidence, 16.1; 95% CI, 11.8-20.3). Irrespective of playing position, those with greater height and lower body mass reported a higher risk of concussions (P =.02), especially during tackling actions for lighter players (P =.01) and during other match events for taller players (P =.03). When adjusted for season phase, players who had accumulated a higher amount of playing time since the beginning of the season demonstrated a lower risk of concussion (P =.005). <br><br>CONCLUSION: Inter- and intraseasonal variations in concussion rates were observed. Within positional groups, lighter and taller players were more at risk, with the highest incidence generally observed in half-backs. Workload was measured by the number of matches played before a concussion event, and it appeared to have a protective rather than deleterious effect on concussion risk.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0363-5465",
doi="10.1177/03635465211006480",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/03635465211006480"
}