A new study, supported by the Premier League Doctors Group, is running throughout the 2018/19 football season to review and potentially enhance concussion diagnosis in football.
The study has been launched by the University of Birmingham and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, supported by the Premier League and funded by The Drake Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation committed to improving understanding of head concussion and brain injury in sport.
The project involves saliva and urine samples being collected from injured Premier League players, as well as uninjured ‘control’ players, by club doctors immediately post-match and at further time points over the course of a players’ recovery.
These samples are then being tested in the laboratory at the University of Birmingham using a new groundbreaking test, called the ‘Birmingham Concussion Test’, which has been developed following a decade of research led by academic neurosurgeon, Professor Tony Belli.
The test looks for molecules in the blood, saliva or urine known as microRNAs, which can act as biomarkers to indicate whether the brain has suffered injury.
Brain injury charity, Headway, has welcomed the exploration of the use of biomarkers to identify concussion while, as specialist brain injury solicitors, we also welcome its potential to assist concussion diagnosis across sports and other frontline settings.