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7 Head acceleration magnitudes in sport-related concussion: systematic review and meta-analysis with over 2.3 million recorded impacts

bmjosem · 2026-01-20 · canonical JSON source

6 visible annotations · policy: published · automated confidence ≥ 75.00%

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Introduction Sport-related concussion (SRC) is one of the most common and concerning injuries in team sports, with potential long-term effects on athlete health and performance. Linear head acceleration (LHA) and rotational head acceleration (RHA) are central biomechanical markers of brain loading during impact. Yet, the magnitude of these accelerations during SRC events remains poorly synthesized across sports, age groups, and sexes.Materials and Methods This review adheres to PRISMA guidelines and was pre-registered in PROSPERO (CRD42024584070). MEDLINE, Scopus, and SPORTDiscus were searched (September 2024). Studies reporting LHA or RHA in diagnosed SRCs were included. Random-effects meta-analyses and subgroup analyses (sport, age, sex, session) were performed.Results Thirty studies comprising 3262 athletes (12% female) and >2.3 million recorded head impacts, including 465 SRCs, were analysed. SRC impacts demonstrated ~140% higher LHA and ~135% higher RHA than subconcussive events, corresponding to mean differences of +37.5g and +2544 rad/s 2. Pooled mean peak values for SRC impacts were 72.0g (LHA) and 4630 rad/s2 (RHA). Subgroup analyses showed highest LHA in American football (83.2g), males (78.2g), and high school athletes (88.3g), while rugby exhibited the highest RHA (7627 rad/s2). Both LHA and RHA tended to be higher during games than practices.Conclusion Across >2.3 million impacts, SRC events were associated with substantially greater head acceleration magnitudes than subconcussive impacts, with large variations across sport, sex, age, and session. These findings highlight the need for standardized measurement approaches and broader inclusion of underrepresented populations to strengthen SRC prevention and athlete safety.