RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 11.28 What is the relationship between mouthguard use and concussion incidence in professional male rugby union?
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 A63
OP A63
DO 10.1136/bjsports-2023-concussion.169
VO 58
IS Suppl 1
A1 West, Stephen
A1 Williams, Sean
A1 Cross, Matthew
A1 Kemp, Simon
A1 Hagel, Brent
A1 Stokes, Keith
YR 2024
UL http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/58/Suppl_1/A63.2.abstract
AB Objective To investigate the association between mouthguard use and match concussion incidence.Design Case-control (cases: match concussions, controls: non-concussion contact injuries).Setting All participating teams in the top tier of professional rugby union in England, 2013–2019.Participants 1436 male professional rugby union players.Interventions (or Assessment of Risk Factors) Medical staff reported mouthguard use at the time of injury/concussion.Outcome Measures Odds of sustaining a match concussion when wearing a mouthguard or not.Main Results Match concussion incidence (2013–19) was 17 per 1000 hours (95% CI:14–20). Sixty-five percent of cases and 54% of controls wore mouthguards. Mouthguard use was associated with concussion injury (adjusted odds ratio: 1.51, 95% CI:1.25–1.82). Median number of days absent due to injury was equal for both cases and controls (9 days). Sustaining a concussion in the current or previous season was associated with a nearly three-fold increased odds of concussion (odds ratio: 2.98, 95% CI:2.58–3.44). Age and position had no significant effect on concussion risk (OR: 0.99, 95% CI:0.97–1.01 and OR: 1.05, 95% CI:0.88–1.27, respectively).Conclusions The use of mouthguards in this professional rugby setting was associated with increased odds of concussion. This was an unexpected finding and the reasons for it are unclear. Mouthguards protect against dental injuries and should still be recommended, but further evidence is needed to understand the relationship with concussion, in particular regarding mouthguard use in non-injured populations, risk taking behaviours of concussed vs non-concussed athletes and mouthguard type (boil and bite/custom fit).