NFL gives UCalgary $12M to lead research on concussions
The University of Calgary has teamed up with the National Football League and research centres across the country to study the effect of sports-related concussions on youth.
On Thursday, the league gave the university a $12-million donation to lead the SHRed Concussions study to monitor concussions in high schools in a bid to reduce sport-related concussions and their consequences in youth.
“It altered my life,” said Ash Kolstad, a student researcher in the Faculty of Kinesiology at the U of C, who suffered a concussion at age 12 when he was checked from behind in a hockey game.
“This research is really important because it sheds light on the impact of concussions and will help provide families with the most current and accurate information, which is reassuring to them.”
The program is led by the university’s Dr. Carolyn Emery and is sponsored by the NFL’s scientific advisory board through the league’s Play Smart. Play Safe. initiative.
The U of C is the only Canadian institution out of five post-secondary schools in North America taking part in the study, and Emery said the partnership will lighten “the burden of concussions in youth sport.”
“This funding is the key to reducing concussions and their public health impact in youth sport,” Emery said. “It will support the development, implementation and evaluation of novel and sustainable approaches to concussion prevention through rule changes, equipment recommendations and training strategies.”
Emery also released in 2017 the results of a five-year study on bodychecking and how it relates to head injuries, concluding that Hockey Calgary ’s 2013 bodychecking ban led to a dramatic decline in concussions.
The funding will support injury monitoring programs in high schools that use tools and methods to detect concussions, predict recovery and inform best practices in the prevention and management of concussions in youth sport.
More than 35 researchers from nine Canadian universities and more than 30 community, government and industry partners have partnered with SHRed Concussions to research youth injuries in sports such as hockey, rugby, football, wrestling, basketball and cheerleading.
In a statement, John Paton, executive director of the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association, said the “groundbreaking ” research will also lead to changes in coaching strategies in high schools.
“It will set up the next generation of youth to enjoy a lower incidence of injury in sports, less injury downtime” and could possibly help “lower (the) dropout rate in school and community sport across Canada.”
The Faculty of Kinesiology at the University of Calgary is ranked the No. 1 sport science school in North America and No. 7 globally.
This funding is the key to reducing concussions and their public health impact in youth sport.