Measuring Head Impacts in Sports

Brain Injuries Clinical Trial

Official title:

Head Impact Recording Technology for Field Applications

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Withdrawn

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT00060827
• Other study ID #: R44HD040743-02
• Status: Withdrawn
• Phase: Phase 2
• First received: May 14, 2003
• Last updated: October 28, 2014

Study information

• Verified date: March 2004
• Source: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Health authority: United States: Federal Government
• Study type: Observational

Clinical Trial Summary

Head impacts in sports can lead to brain injury even when the participant is wearing a helmet. The forces that contribute to brain injury from sports-related head impacts are not well understood. This study will test a new device to measure the speed of head impacts among football players.

Description:

Each year, 50 to 70 million people in the United States participate in helmeted and unhelmeted sports with the potential for head impacts. Such sports include football, soccer, hockey, basketball, and boxing. Participating in these sports carries the risk of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI). The biomechanics of head impacts that result in concussions or other MTBIs are not well understood; however, it is thought that such impacts correlate with head accelerations. Currently, there is no system that allows researchers to measure head acceleration in a large number of individuals during actual play. This is a major obstacle in understanding the mechanism of MTBI and its prevention. This study will evaluate a newly designed miniature device that uses Head Impact Recording Technology (HIRT) to quantify head acceleration during impact in actual sports play.

One hundred college football players will be enrolled in the study. Data from HIRT-instrumented helmets will be collected during normal team practice and games throughout a 5-month football season. Data collected will be assessed to determine the incidence, magnitude, and duration of head acceleration during impacts on the sports field.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Withdrawn
• Enrollment: 0
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: Male
• Age group: 18 Years to 24 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria

• College football players

Study Design

N/A

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Brain Concussion
• Brain Injuries

Intervention

Device:
• Head Impact Recording Technology (HIRT)

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	Penn State University	State College	Pennsylvania

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Impact Severity		Immediate