Evaluation of Concussion History in Semi-Professional Female Soccer Players

Objective: To examine the concussion history through a questionnaire for female soccer players in order to formulate potential risk factors and discover characteristics unique to this population.

Design: Administer a survey based questionnaire evaluating concussion history among the athletes in the New York Metropolitan Women’s League.

Results: Of 105 individuals, 65 (61.9%) reported concussions during their career. Of that 65, only 33 were medically diagnosed with a concussion and the majority of individuals suffered three or less concussions (63.1%). Five players reported that they suffered from 10 or more concussions. Only 41 of 105 individuals reported the presence of a medical team on site to aid with injuries. Further analysis revealed correlations between increasing age (p=0.0162), increasing experience (p<0.0053), and increasing number of headers (p=0.0107) with concussion rates. Those who played multiple positionswere more likely to suffer from concussions (p=0.03556).

Conclusions: The lack of education about concussions is a major area of concern with the population studied. Only 52% of individuals surveyed reported ever receiving any education about concussions, highlighting a need for better concussion education for players and ancillary staff. Providing basic training to coaches and ancillary staff to evaluate for concussions might be a viable option to prevent early return to play and increased rates of concussions.

Keywords: concussion, traumatic brain injury, athletic training, rehabilitation.