Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40766043›Full record

ArticleBMJ open sport & exercise medicine2025

Tackle characteristics associated with concussion in elite men's rugby union: unpicking the differences between tacklers and ball-carriers.

Keith A Stokes, Duncan Locke, Simon Roberts, Steffan Griffin, Stephen W West, Ben Jones, Matt Cross, Simon P T Kemp, Sean Williams

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open sport & exercise medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
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

9 authors.

Keith A StokesUK Collaborating Centre on Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport, University of Bath, Bath, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5049-2838
Duncan LockeRugby Football Union, London, UK.
Simon RobertsUK Collaborating Centre on Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport, University of Bath, Bath, UK.
Steffan GriffinThe University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
Stephen W WestUK Collaborating Centre on Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport, University of Bath, Bath, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5800-7000
Ben JonesCarnegie Applied Rugby Research (CARR) centre, Leeds Beckett University-Headingley Campus, Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4274-6236
Matt CrossCarnegie Applied Rugby Research (CARR) centre, Leeds Beckett University-Headingley Campus, Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK.
Simon P T KempRugby Football Union, London, UK.
Sean WilliamsUK Collaborating Centre on Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport, University of Bath, Bath, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1460-0085

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Objective: To identify characteristics of tackling, of being tackled and interactions between tackle characteristics that are associated with concussion. Methods: A case-control study in male professional rugby union players in England over five seasons (2016/2017 to 2020/2021) analysed characteristics of tackles that led to a clinically diagnosed concussion (cases), and a control group of tackles that did not result in a concussion. ORs were plotted against the overall frequency of each tackle characteristic. Results: 231 tackles resulting in concussions (tackler 178, 77%; ball-carrier 53, 23%), alongside 9963 control tackles, were analysed. For tacklers, 'head to torso' ( Conclusions: Lower tackles reduce the chances of concussion to ball-carriers. The influence of tackle height on concussion to tacklers is more nuanced, but the chances are relatively low when contact is made with the ball-carrier's torso. These findings support ongoing implementation of strategies to reduce concussion risk by lowering tackle height to target the torso.

Indexed as

ConcussionMaleSports

Identifiers

PMID40766043
PMCPMC12323531

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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.