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Sport-related concussion in soccer –a scoping review of available guidelines and a call for action to FIFA & soccer governing bodies

Demetriades, Andreas K. ; Shah, Imran ; Marklund, Niklas LU orcid ; Clusmann, Hans and Peul, Wilco (2024) In Brain and Spine 4.
Abstract

Introduction: Sport-related concussions (SRC) have been a concern in all sports, including soccer. The long-term effects of soccer-related head injuries are a public health concern. The Concussion in Sport Group (CISG) released a consensus statement in 2017 and several soccer governing associations have published their own SRC guidelines while referring to it but it is unclear whether this has been universally adopted. Research question: We aimed to investigate whether guidelines published by soccer associations have any discrepancies; and the extent to which they follow the CISG recommendations. Materials and methods: A scoping review of available soccer-specific SRC guidelines was performed via databases PubMed, Google Scholar, and... (More)

Introduction: Sport-related concussions (SRC) have been a concern in all sports, including soccer. The long-term effects of soccer-related head injuries are a public health concern. The Concussion in Sport Group (CISG) released a consensus statement in 2017 and several soccer governing associations have published their own SRC guidelines while referring to it but it is unclear whether this has been universally adopted. Research question: We aimed to investigate whether guidelines published by soccer associations have any discrepancies; and the extent to which they follow the CISG recommendations. Materials and methods: A scoping review of available soccer-specific SRC guidelines was performed via databases PubMed, Google Scholar, and official soccer association websites via web browser Google. The inclusion criteria were soccer-specific SRC guidelines. Comparisons between guidelines were made concerning the following index items: initial (on-site) assessment, removal from play, re-evaluation with neuroimaging, return-to-sport protocol, special populations, and education. Results: Nine soccer associations with available guidelines were included in this review. Guidelines obtained were from official associations in the United Kingdom, United States of America, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. When compared to each other and the CISG recommendations, discrepancies were found within guidelines regarding the index items. Additionally, major soccer associations in some countries famous for soccer were found to have not published any publicly available guidelines. Discussion and conclusion: SRC guidelines from different soccer associations contain discrepancies which may be detrimental to athletes, both short and long-term. We recommend that all major soccer governing associations publish guidelines that are standardised and accessible to all athletes.

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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Concussion in Sport Group (CISG), Guidelines, Soccer, Soccer professional associations, Sport-related concussion
in
Brain and Spine
volume
4
article number
102763
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85184803651
ISSN
2772-5294
DOI
10.1016/j.bas.2024.102763
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
99765722-322e-4702-8e0f-038b276d271a
date added to LUP
2024-02-29 15:14:15
date last changed
2024-02-29 15:16:37
@article{99765722-322e-4702-8e0f-038b276d271a,
  abstract     = {{<p>Introduction: Sport-related concussions (SRC) have been a concern in all sports, including soccer. The long-term effects of soccer-related head injuries are a public health concern. The Concussion in Sport Group (CISG) released a consensus statement in 2017 and several soccer governing associations have published their own SRC guidelines while referring to it but it is unclear whether this has been universally adopted. Research question: We aimed to investigate whether guidelines published by soccer associations have any discrepancies; and the extent to which they follow the CISG recommendations. Materials and methods: A scoping review of available soccer-specific SRC guidelines was performed via databases PubMed, Google Scholar, and official soccer association websites via web browser Google. The inclusion criteria were soccer-specific SRC guidelines. Comparisons between guidelines were made concerning the following index items: initial (on-site) assessment, removal from play, re-evaluation with neuroimaging, return-to-sport protocol, special populations, and education. Results: Nine soccer associations with available guidelines were included in this review. Guidelines obtained were from official associations in the United Kingdom, United States of America, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. When compared to each other and the CISG recommendations, discrepancies were found within guidelines regarding the index items. Additionally, major soccer associations in some countries famous for soccer were found to have not published any publicly available guidelines. Discussion and conclusion: SRC guidelines from different soccer associations contain discrepancies which may be detrimental to athletes, both short and long-term. We recommend that all major soccer governing associations publish guidelines that are standardised and accessible to all athletes.</p>}},
  author       = {{Demetriades, Andreas K. and Shah, Imran and Marklund, Niklas and Clusmann, Hans and Peul, Wilco}},
  issn         = {{2772-5294}},
  keywords     = {{Concussion in Sport Group (CISG); Guidelines; Soccer; Soccer professional associations; Sport-related concussion}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Brain and Spine}},
  title        = {{Sport-related concussion in soccer –a scoping review of available guidelines and a call for action to FIFA & soccer governing bodies}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bas.2024.102763}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.bas.2024.102763}},
  volume       = {{4}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}