Heads Up on Headers: Effects of Soccer Ball Heading on Brain Function
-
Jessie Castro
Di Virgilio TG, Hunter A, Wilson L, et al. Evidence for acute electrophysiological and cognitive changes following routine soccer heading. EBioMedicine. 2016;13:66-77. doi:10.1016/j.ebiom.2016.10.029
Researchers in Scotland conducted a pilot study to measure the immediate electrophysical and cognitive effects of heading, a routine soccer (football in the United Kingdom) activity. Heading has been associated with subconcussive head trauma.1,2
Amateur soccer players were recruited from local soccer clubs and universities for inclusion in the study. Exclusion criteria included the following: history of head injury causing loss of consciousness, history of a neurologic condition, history of concussion within the past 12 months, family history of epilepsy, and the use of psychoactive or prescription drugs. Each participant underwent a heading protocol that consisted of heading a standard soccer ball at standardized speeds. The primary outcome measure was corticomotor inhibition, which was measured using transcranial magnetic stimulation. This measurement consisted of quantifying the cortical silent period after motor-evoked potentials were delivered to the appropriate primary motor complex. Secondary outcome measures included reaction time, paired associate learning, spatial working memory, attention task switching, and rapid visual processing, all of which were assessed based on the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Measurements were taken at baseline and immediately after, 24 hours after, 48 hours after, and 14 days after the heading protocol.
After performing 20 headers, there was a significant increase (P=.049) in corticomotor inhibition in 14 of 19 participants (74%). Also, after the protocol, the participants had reduced spatial working memory and paired associated learning, demonstrating impaired short-term and long-term memory, respectively. However, all of these changes were proven to be transient.
This study provides a starting point for quantifiably measuring the effects of subconcussive (and possibly concussive) effects. A crossover study with a control group and metabolic measurements would be the next step along these lines. If these measurement methods prove to be valid and clinically useful, studies using osteopathic manipulative treatment to reverse the effects of concussion, as measured by transcranial magnetic stimulation and the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery, would be of interest to osteopathic physicians in primary care and sports medicine.
References
1. Patlak M , JoyEJ (eds). Is Soccer Bad for Children's Heads?Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 2017.Search in Google Scholar
2. Pfister T , PfisterK, HagelB, GhaliWA, RonksleyPE. The incidence of concussion in youth sports: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2016;50(5):292-297. doi:10.1136/bjsports-2015-094978Search in Google Scholar PubMed
© 2017 American Osteopathic Association
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Articles in the same Issue
- HEALTH POLICY
- Financing Reform for Long-term Services and Supports
- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
- Reclassification of the Sacral Autonomic Outflow to Pelvic Organs as the Caudal Outpost of the Sympathetic System Is Misleading
- CORRECTION
- Correction
- AOA COMMUNICATION
- Official Call: 2017 Annual Business Meeting of the American Osteopathic Association (Reprint)
- Proposed Amendments to the AOA Constitution, Bylaws, and Code of Ethics (Reprint)
- ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION
- Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors After an Employer-Based Risk Reduction Program: An Observational Cohort Study
- Effect of Latitude on Vitamin D Levels
- REVIEW
- Reducing Off-Label Antipsychotic Use in Older Community-Dwelling Adults With Dementia: A Narrative Review
- MEDICAL EDUCATION
- Integrating Point-of-Care Ultrasonography Into the Osteopathic Medical School Curriculum
- SPECIAL COMMUNICATION
- Highlights From the American Diabetes Association's 2017 Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes for Osteopathic Physicians
- CASE REPORT
- Thrombocytopenia and Spontaneous Intracranial Hemorrhage After Olanzapine Therapy
- THE SOMATIC CONNECTION
- Heads Up on Headers: Effects of Soccer Ball Heading on Brain Function
- Effects of Manual Therapy on Patients With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Manual Therapy to Manage Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy for Foot-Pain: How Many Sessions? How Often?
- CLINICAL IMAGES
- Hematemesis Caused by Forgotten Corrective Device
Articles in the same Issue
- HEALTH POLICY
- Financing Reform for Long-term Services and Supports
- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
- Reclassification of the Sacral Autonomic Outflow to Pelvic Organs as the Caudal Outpost of the Sympathetic System Is Misleading
- CORRECTION
- Correction
- AOA COMMUNICATION
- Official Call: 2017 Annual Business Meeting of the American Osteopathic Association (Reprint)
- Proposed Amendments to the AOA Constitution, Bylaws, and Code of Ethics (Reprint)
- ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION
- Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors After an Employer-Based Risk Reduction Program: An Observational Cohort Study
- Effect of Latitude on Vitamin D Levels
- REVIEW
- Reducing Off-Label Antipsychotic Use in Older Community-Dwelling Adults With Dementia: A Narrative Review
- MEDICAL EDUCATION
- Integrating Point-of-Care Ultrasonography Into the Osteopathic Medical School Curriculum
- SPECIAL COMMUNICATION
- Highlights From the American Diabetes Association's 2017 Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes for Osteopathic Physicians
- CASE REPORT
- Thrombocytopenia and Spontaneous Intracranial Hemorrhage After Olanzapine Therapy
- THE SOMATIC CONNECTION
- Heads Up on Headers: Effects of Soccer Ball Heading on Brain Function
- Effects of Manual Therapy on Patients With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Manual Therapy to Manage Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy for Foot-Pain: How Many Sessions? How Often?
- CLINICAL IMAGES
- Hematemesis Caused by Forgotten Corrective Device
