RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 11.13 Concussion incidence and mechanisms of action in professional Australian footballers – differences between men and women JF British Journal of Sports Medicine JO Br J Sports Med FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine SP A141 OP A142 DO 10.1136/bjsports-2023-concussion.371 VO 58 IS Suppl 1 A1 Gastin, Tom A1 Sunderland, Patrick A1 Anderson, Hamish A1 Makdissi, Michael A1 Davis, Gavin A1 Hearps, Stephen A1 Green, Brady A1 Harcourt, Peter A1 Willmott, Catherine A1 Clifton, Patrick YR 2024 UL http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/58/Suppl_1/A141.3.abstract AB Objective To assess the incidence of, and mechanisms causing concussion in elite male (AFL) and female (AFLW) Australian football, to identify potential targets for risk reduction.Design Retrospective study.Setting/Participants Concussion data was obtained from the AFL medical database, which included all concussions sustained by AFL (male) players from 2015–18 and AFLW (female) players from 2017–19. All concussions were diagnosed by experienced clinicians utilising standardised concussion assessment tools and injury definitions, as well as video review.Interventions Where available, video footage of each incident was obtained and analysed to determine the circumstances in which each concussion occurred, including the mechanism and the contact point of impact.Main Results Overall, 252 concussions (6.72 per 1,000 player hours, 95%CI: 5.89–7.55) were reported in 779 matches in the AFL competition, compared to 44 concussions in 96 matches (14.61 per 1,000 player hours, 95%CI: 10.38–18.85) in the AFLW competition. Video footage was available for 194/252 (77%) concussions in the AFL and 35/44 (80%) concussions in the AFLW. Video analysis determined that players ‘being bumped’ (23%) and ‘being tackled’ (20%) were the most prevalent mechanisms in the AFLW, compared with the AFL in which ‘marking contests’ (multiple players attempting to catch the football, 28%) were most commonly associated with diagnosed concussion.Conclusions These findings confirm that there is a higher incidence of concussion in females compared to males in elite Australian football. The study also suggests that the mechanisms associated with concussion differ across the male and female competitions, potentially requiring individualised injury prevention efforts.