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Sport Sciences for Health
Published in: Sport Sciences for Health 4/2021

01-12-2021 | Traumatic Brain Injuries | Original Article

A five-year clinical audit of concussive injuries in South African collegiate male rugby players—a South African experience

Authors: Lovemore Kunorozva, Riaan van Tonder, Lindsay Starling, James C. Brown, Pierre L. Viviers, Elton W. Derman

Published in: Sport Sciences for Health | Issue 4/2021

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Abstract

Background

Sports-related concussion (SRC) is a common injury mostly in contact sports. Specifically, it is a public health concern for collegiate rugby athletes because at least one concussion is reported in every two games and concussion has been reported to increase the risk of developing neuro-degenerative disorders later in life.

Aim

To clinically audit concussions to examine commonly reported signs/symptoms in the Sports Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT).

Materials and methods

Retrospective audit of a South African University health services medical electronic records database for all concussion International Classification of Diseases 10 (ICD10) diagnoses codes: S06.0, S06.00 and S06.01 in 367 rugby players (age 24.6 ± 4.3, height 1.8 ± 0.1 and weight; 90.7 ± 14.4) for the period 2013–2018.

Results

SCAT data was obtained for 70% of the 434 concussions. Headache (57%), “pressure in head” (56%), feeling slowed down (55%) and fatigue/low energy (54%) were the most frequently reported concussion symptoms on the SCAT. A significant reduction in the serial SCAT symptom (p < 0.001) and severity (p < 0.001) scores was observed in a sub-set of the rugby players. The concussion incidence proportion was 7%; this was obtained from an annual estimate of the University rugby club’s registered players and concussion count (n = 87) during the five-year period.

Discussion and conclusions

The initial SCAT sub-domain scores following a SRC in this collegiate cohort were consistent with other elite adult male sport cohorts in endorsing many symptoms and showing low-concentration scores. A unique feature of this study was the tracking of serial symptoms in a sub-set of this cohort. These players showed a clear reduction in symptom endorsement, but were still not symptom-free by their third SCAT. The collegiate student population should be educated regarding symptoms, including headache, which might be indicative of concussion following a head injury.
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Metadata
Title
A five-year clinical audit of concussive injuries in South African collegiate male rugby players—a South African experience
Authors
Lovemore Kunorozva
Riaan van Tonder
Lindsay Starling
James C. Brown
Pierre L. Viviers
Elton W. Derman
Publication date
01-12-2021
Publisher
Springer Milan
Published in
Sport Sciences for Health / Issue 4/2021
Print ISSN: 1824-7490
Electronic ISSN: 1825-1234
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11332-021-00768-1

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