Sports-Related Subconcussive Head Trauma

Abstract

There is a growing concern in clinical practice regarding the immediate and long-term effects of multiple and frequent subconcussive blows in athletes participating in full contact sports. The effects of repetitive subconcussive head trauma, occurring in full contact sports, on brain structural, functional, and metabolic integrity has not been sufficiently investigated. It is yet to be determined whether these multiple subconcussive blows induce transient alterations in the brain or long-term deficits. Animal, neuropsychological, biomechanical, neuroimaging, and postmortem studies have all been used to study subconcussive head trauma. However, there is no consistency throughout the literature about whether or not subconcussive impacts have detrimental effects. More recent studies highlighting the prevalence of certain neurological etiologies, like chronic traumatic encephalopathy associated with a history of repetitive concussive and subconcussive head trauma, highlights the need for future research into this area of research.