TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2017//
TI  - Impaired cognitive performance in youth athletes exposed to repetitive head impacts
JO  - Journal of neurotrauma
A1  - Koerte, Inga Katharina
A1  - Nichols, Elizabeth
A1  - Tripodis, Yorghos
A1  - Schultz, Vivian
A1  - Lehner, Stefan
A1  - Igbinoba, Randy
A1  - Chuang, Alice Z.
A1  - Mayinger, Michael
A1  - Klier, Eliana
A1  - Muehlmann, Marc
A1  - Kaufmann, David
A1  - Lepage, Christian
A1  - Heinen, Florian
A1  - Schulte-Koerne, Gerd
A1  - Zafonte, Ross D.
A1  - Shenton, Martha E.
A1  - Sereno, Anne B.
SP  - 2389
EP  - 2395
VL  - 34
IS  - 16
N2  - BACKGROUND: Worldwide more than 22 million children and adolescents are exposed to repetitive head impacts (RHI) in soccer. Evidence indicates cumulative effects on brain structure, but it is not known whether exposure to RHI affects cognitive improvement in adolescents. To determine whether exposure to RHI while heading the ball in soccer affects improvement in cognitive performance in adolescents over time. <br><br>METHODS: The study group consisted of a convenience sample of 16 male soccer players (mean age 15.7±0.7 years). A comparison cohort of 14 male non-contact sports athletes (mean age 14.9±1.1 years) was recruited from competitive athletic clubs and group-matched on age. Using the ProPoint and AntiPoint tasks, sensorimotor and cognitive functions were measured over both immediate (pre- versus post-training) as well as across multiple time points within a play season. The number and type of head impacts that occurred during the training were counted. The main outcome measure was the change in response time (RT) in the ProPoint and AntiPoint tasks. The immediate (pre- versus post-training) and longer-term (across a play season) change in RT was analyzed and the effect of the number and type of head impacts was tested. <br><br>RESULTS: Thirty athletes with and without exposure to RHI demonstrated a decrease in RT in both tasks immediately after training. Over the play season, both groups showed improvement in sensorimotor function. However, while the Control group also improved in cognitive performance, the soccer players did not. Further, the more long headers performed, the slower the improvement in RT over the season. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Youth athletes experience an immediate cognitive improvement after training most likely due to physical exercise. <br><br>RESULTS of this study also suggest an association between exposure to specific RHI (long headers) and lack of improvement in cognitive performance in youth athletes over time.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0897-7151
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/neu.2016.4960
ID  - ref1
ER  -