Football and Head Impact: To Play or Not to Play
Michael P.W. Donnelly, Sulcus Scientific Consulting,
Desiree Budd, Daniel Comstock, Taylor Adams, Tim Pastika, Kyle Slawson, Matt McNutt, Nathan Olinger
University of Wisconsin Stout
Background
• Studies show long-term detrimental cognitive effects of
sports-related concussions can last up to 30 years [1].
Results
ERP Data
Football Concussed
Football Non-Concussed
Fz
Fz
Non-Football Control
Fz
Target
Distractor
Standard
• We compared the cognitive functions of male college
students, who played football during high school
(concussed and non-concussed) to those who participated
in low-impact high school sports, such as baseball.
Auditory Oddball Task
• To assess their neural reactions to unpredictable but
recognizable events, subjects performed a three tone
Auditory Oddball task while we measured their brain activity
using EEG. Subjects pressed a button when they heard a
target tone that occurred among a series of more frequent
standard tones and a less frequent distractor tone. A P300
wave occurs if the subject is actively engaged in the task of
detecting the targets. The amplitude and latency of the
P300 has been shown to be associated with cognitive
function.
•
•
One of three tones played each trial
• 80% = Standard Tone
• 10% = Distractor Tone
• 10% = Target Tone (Oddball)
Press key whenever Target Tone occurs
Wechsler Adult Intelligent Scale
• Participants also performed sections of the Wechsler Adult
Intelligence Scale (WAIS).
Processing speed examined through
two tests
• Coding
• Symbol Search
Cz
Pz
Pz
• Cz & Pz P300 component of ERP is
modulated by both stimulus significance
and novelty. P300 shows attenuation
and increased latency for football
groups compared to the non-football
control group.
Figure 1: Grand mean ERPs from midline electrode sites (Fz, Cz, & Pz) by condition (standard, distractor,
and target) .
WAIS Processing Speed
EEG Activity
Distractor
mean coding score
Method
Cz
Standard
Target
Football
Concussed
Figure 2: Mean WAIS coding score
by group.
mean symbol matching
• Few studies have assessed whether similar long-term
cognitive effects are experienced by individuals who
experienced repetitive, non-concussive, sports-related
head impacts while playing high school football.
Cz
• Fz N200 component of ERP acts as a
mismatch detector, but it has also been
found to reflect executive cognitive
control functions. N200 shows
attenuation in the football groups
compared to the non-football group.
Football
Non-Concussed
Non-Football
Control
Figure 3: Mean WAIS symbol
matching score by group.
Figure 4: Topographic map of EEG activity
by condition at 370 ms post stimulus onset.
Conclusions
• Both concussed and non-concussed former high school football players show decreased neural response during the
auditory oddball task compared to the non-concussed controls. However, the former football players did not perform
differently than the non-concussed controls on the WAIS processing speed subscales.
• Repetitive, non-concussive, sports-related head impacts may have long-term detrimental consequences related to
attention and executive function, similar to those experienced by football players who have been diagnosed with
concussion. Paper/pencil and computerized working memory assessments, however, may not always be sensitive
enough to detect these changes.
[1]De Beaumont,L., The´oret, H., Mongeon, D., Messier, J., Leclerc, S., Tremblay, S., Ellemberg D., & Lassonde, M. (2009) Brain function decline in healthy retired athletes who
sustained their last sports concussion in early adulthood, Brain, 132, 695–708.
A special thanks to Jo Hopp , Daniel Krenzer, and Steffanie Fisher for their help on this project.
Partially Funded by DUE: 1020906
For more information contact buddd@uwstout.edu