Background

Head acceleration events (HAEs) are an increasing concern in collision sports owing to potential negative health outcomes.

Objectives

The objective of this study is to describe the probabilities of HAEs in tackles of differing heights and body positions in elite men’s and women’s rugby union.

Methods

Instrumented mouthguards (iMGs) were worn in men’s (n = 24 teams, 508 players, 782 observations) and women’s (n = 26 teams, 350 players, 1080 observations) rugby union matches. Tackle height (i.e. point of contact on ball-carrier) and body positions of tacklers and ball-carriers were labelled for all tackles in which a player wore an iMG. HAEs from the initial impact were identified. Mean player, tackler and ball-carrier exceedance probabilities for various peak linear and angular acceleration thresholds were estimated from ordinal mixed-effects models.

Results

Contact with ball-carriers’ head/neck resulted in the highest mean HAE probabilities for both sexes. The probability of an HAE to the ball-carrier decreased as tackle height lowered. The highest probability for the tackler was initial contact to the ball-carriers upper leg. Body position influenced the probability of HAEs, with falling/diving ball-carriers resulting in higher mean probabilities. When a player, regardless of role, was bent-at-waist, elevated HAE probabilities were observed in men’s competitions. Women’s data demonstrated similar probabilities of an HAE for all body positions.

Conclusions

Initial contact to the ball-carrier’s head/neck had the highest chance of an HAE, whilst role-specific differences are apparent for different tackle heights and body positions. Future player-welfare strategies targeting contact events should therefore consider HAE mechanisms along with current literature.

中文翻译：

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评估精英男子和女子橄榄球联盟比洞赛中头部加速事件的概率：铲球高度和身体位置的影响

 背景

由于潜在的负面健康后果，头部加速事件 （HAE） 在碰撞运动中越来越受到关注。

 目标

本研究的目的是描述精英男子和女子橄榄球联盟中不同身高和身体位置的铲球中 HAE 的概率。

 方法

男子（n = 24 支球队，508 名球员，782 次观察）和女子（n = 26 支球队，350 名球员，1080 次观察）橄榄球联盟比赛中佩戴了仪器化护齿器 （iMG）。铲球高度（即持球者的接触点）和铲球手和持球者的身体位置被标记为球员佩戴 iMG 的所有铲球。确定了最初影响的 HAE。根据顺序混合效应模型估计各种峰值线性和角加速度阈值的平均球员、铲球手和持球者超额概率。

 结果

与持球者的头部/颈部接触导致两性的平均 HAE 概率最高。随着铲球高度的降低，持球者发生 HAE 的可能性降低。铲球者的最高概率是最初接触持球者大腿。体位影响 HAE 的概率，跌倒/俯冲持球者导致平均概率更高。当一名球员，无论角色如何，腰部弯曲时，在男子比赛中观察到 HAE 概率升高。女性数据显示所有身体姿势的 HAE 概率相似。

 结论

最初接触持球者的头部/颈部时，发生 HAE 的几率最高，而对于不同的铲球高度和身体位置，特定于角色的差异是显而易见的。因此，针对接触事件的未来球员福利策略应考虑 HAE 机制以及当前文献。