Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41733814›Full record

ArticleSports medicine - open2026

Effects of One Season of Rugby on the Neurological Integrity of Male Adolescent Players.

Stefan Henley, Nicole Spriggs, Natalia Kabaliuk, Danyon Stitt, Annette Swale, Congyu Xu, Kevin Mangan, Mike Hamlin, Rich Masters, Tracy Melzer and 7 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Sports medicine - open, 2026. 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

17 authors.

Stefan HenleyFaculty of Health, University of Canterbury, Christchurch , New Zealand. sthenley@fullerton.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1397-8246
Nicole SpriggsDepartment of Tourism, Sport, and Society, Lincoln University, Lincoln, New Zealand.
Natalia KabaliukDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Danyon StittDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Annette SwaleDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Congyu XuDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Kevin ManganFaculty of Health, University of Canterbury, Christchurch , New Zealand.
Mike HamlinDepartment of Tourism, Sport, and Society, Lincoln University, Lincoln, New Zealand.
Rich MastersSchool of Health, University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand.
Tracy MelzerSchool of Psychology, Speech, & Hearing, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Arindam BasuFaculty of Health, University of Canterbury, Christchurch , New Zealand.
Tim AndersonNew Zealand Brain Research Institute, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Deborah SnellDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery & Musculoskeletal Medicine, University of Otago, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Adrian ClarkSchool of Product Design, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Keith AlexanderDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
Samantha HoldsworthMātai Medical Research Institute, Gisborne, New Zealand.
Nick DraperFaculty of Health, University of Canterbury, Christchurch , New Zealand.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundRugby union is a popular contact sport during which high impact collisions frequently occur. There is concern for the overall brain health of those playing the game, as concussion is a potential outcome of high impact collisions. Repeated sub-concussive collisions may compromise rugby players' neurological integrity, but little is known about the effects on young brains. The brain is still developing during adolescence and may generally be more susceptible to injury, but minimal objective research data are available regarding head acceleration events experienced by junior players.

resultsForty-one adolescent male rugby players underwent pre- and post-season MRI scans and neuro-cognitive assessments. Participants were fitted with instrumented mouthguards to record head acceleration events experienced during the season. Post-season processing of MRI scans focused on within-subject analysis of pre- to post-season changes in white matter as measured by diffusion tensor imaging. Linear mixed models were used to investigate correlations between neurological changes and cumulative head impact loading recorded by the mouthguards. MRI results indicated a non-significant difference between pre- and post-season for data relating to brain structure and function, including white matter microstructure, in response to one season of contact training and match play for under-16 male rugby players, as measured by diffusion tensor imaging. These results held irrespective of level of exposure.

conclusionsOur data suggest that exposure to one season of rugby does not appear to result in neurological compromise. The statistical non-significance reported for the main outcome measure also held when controlling for variables, such as training age and headgear use. Although pre- to post-season differences were statistically non-significant, the long-term effects of high exposure may be of clinical significance going forward. Further research, particularly using longitudinal designs, is needed to further elucidate the potential for microstructural neurological changes in adolescent rugby players.

Indexed as

Adolescent rugbyDiffusion tensor imagingHead acceleration eventInstrumented mouthguardNeuro-cognitive assessmentWhite matter microstructure

Identifiers

PMID41733814
PMCPMC12932775

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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.