Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29530941›Full record

ArticleBritish journal of sports medicine2019

On average, a professional rugby union player is more likely than not to sustain a concussion after 25 matches.

James Rafferty, Craig Ranson, Giles Oatley, Mohamed Mostafa, Prabhat Mathema, Tom Crick, Isabel S Moore

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In one paragraph

Article in British journal of sports medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
25citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

25 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

James RaffertyMedical School, Swansea University, Swansea, UK.
Craig RansonEnglish Institute of Sport, Manchester, UK.
Giles OatleySchool of Engineering and Information Technology, Murdoch University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
Mohamed MostafaSocial Data Science Lab, School of Computer Science and Informatics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK.
Prabhat MathemaWelsh Rugby Union, Cardiff, UK.
Tom CrickDepartment of Computing and Information Systems, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cardiff, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5196-9389
Isabel S MooreCardiff School of Sport and Health Sciences, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cardiff, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4746-3390

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo investigate concussion injury rates, the likelihood of sustaining concussion relative to the number of rugby union matches and the risk of subsequent injury following concussion.

methodsA four-season (2012/2013-2015/2016) prospective cohort study of injuries in professional level (club and international) rugby union. Incidence (injuries/1000 player-match-hours), severity (days lost per injury) and number of professional matches conferring a large risk of concussion were determined. The risk of injury following concussion was assessed using a survival model.

resultsConcussion incidence increased from 7.9 (95% CI 5.1 to 11.7) to 21.5 injuries/1000 player-match-hours (95% CI 16.4 to 27.6) over the four seasons for combined club and international rugby union. Concussion severity was unchanged over time (median: 9 days). Players were at a greater risk of sustaining a concussion than not after an exposure of 25 matches (95% CI 19 to 32). Injury risk (any injury) was 38% greater (HR 1.38; 95% CI 1.21 to 1.56) following concussion than after a non-concussive injury. Injuries to the head and neck (HR 1.34; 95% CI 1.06 to 1.70), upper limb (HR 1.59; 95% CI 1.19 to 2.12), pelvic region (HR 2.07; 95% CI 1.18 to 3.65) and the lower limb (HR 1.60; 95% CI 1.21 to 2.10) were more likely following concussion than after a non-concussive injury.

conclusionConcussion incidence increased, while severity remained unchanged, during the 4 years of this study. Playing more than 25 matches in the 2015/2016 season meant that sustaining concussion was more likely than not sustaining concussion. The 38% greater injury risk after concussive injury (compared with non-concussive injury) suggests return to play protocols warrant investigation.

Indexed as

Athletic InjuriesBrain ConcussionCompetitive BehaviorFootballHumansIncidenceMaleProspective StudiesRecurrenceSeasonsSeverity of Illness IndexWalesconcussiondata scienceinjury risksubsequent injury

Identifiers

PMID29530941
PMCPMC6662947

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.