News & Headlines

Concussions in children aged 6 and under continue to affect their health three months after the event. This is the finding of a study led by Miriam Beauchamp, a professor in the Department of Psychology at Université de Montréal and researcher at Sainte-Justine hospital. Using a new measurement tool for young children, Beauchamp and her team demonstrated that early childhood concussions cause significantly elevated post-concussive symptoms that are not attributable solely to the general effects of the injury.

Amid ample evidence of the dangers of head injuries sustained by football players, the NFL recently announced that it would be mandating protective soft-shell helmet covers — known as Guardian Caps — at every preseason practice, every regular-season and postseason practice with contact, and allow them during regular games.

Among US children who show significant symptoms after a head injury, 23% are not evaluated for concussion or brain trauma. These children are also more likely to experience mental and social disturbances, such as depressive symptoms, and require mental health services. Researchers who published their findings in the journal Brain Injury suggest that routine concussion evaluation should be emphasized, especially in younger children.

Traumatic brain injuries, including concussion, may lead to hearing and vision problems. Sometimes, these hearing and vision injuries are either not immediately apparent or require additional testing to be diagnosed, according to experts from the Defense Health Agency. These injuries may show up together.

The family of the late Joe Kinnear and four Premier League-era players are among a number of claimants taking legal action against football’s governing bodies over brain injuries allegedly suffered during their careers.

Professional mountain bikers will be among the first to use a new, Scottish-developed device to monitor head impacts and their long term repercussions. Several of the world’s top riders will start the new season with the HIT device, which monitors the g-force of a head impact, attached to their helmets. The technology also measures the smaller cumulative impacts experienced by riders on runs, even when they don’t crash, similar to the effect on a footballer regularly heading a ball over the course of a match. The unit connects to an app which provides a traffic light warning system and, as concussion can be complicated to diagnose, allows the user to make an informed decision on whether or not to seek medical attention.

Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have discovered leaky blood vessels, together with a hyperactive immune system may be the underlying cause of brain fog in people with long Covid. They suggest their discovery is important for the understanding of brain fog and cognitive decline – difficulty with thinking, memory or concentration – seen in some people with the condition. It is hoped the findings will help with the development of treatments in the future.

Researchers are trying to determine if a number of Canadian veterans are suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death. CTE is often accompanied by psychiatric symptoms, which could develop into suicidal thoughts, according to researchers. However, little is understood scientifically about a possible link, nor how widespread CTE is among veterans. Standing inside a brain imaging lab at Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, researcher Isabelle Boileau says it’s possible that armed forces members who’ve been exposed to explosions could be suffering from CTE.

The NFL is set to introduce a significant rule change for the upcoming 2024 season, as it allows players to wear Guardian Caps in a bid to ramp up safety measures. The league has been proactive in its approach to player safety, with the new helmets reportedly slashing concussion rates by almost half during training camps over the last two years. Data from specific position groups that used the helmets in 2022 and 2023 showed a substantial reduction in head injuries, prompting NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller to endorse the move.

Soldiers can suffer brain injury if they are repeatedly exposed to explosive blasts, a new study shows. Further, the more frequently a soldier is exposed to explosions, the greater their risk for brain injury, researchers reported April 22 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Based on this, researchers intend to develop a diagnostic test to detect blast brain injury in military personnel.

A legendary rugby player has cited the fear and anxiety that has come into his life among the reasons for urging the Australian government to fund support services and education about chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).