Youth female hockey coaches have overall adequate knowledge of concussion; however, gaps in knowledge do exist. Future efforts to raise the concussion knowledge among coaches of female youth hockey should include information specific to the mechanism of injury, along with sign and symptom identification, with particular attention paid to emotional symptoms. Given the reported preferences and the widespread availability of the Internet, further exploration and research validation of online courses and web sites tailored to the youth female hockey community is encouraged.

Concussion is one of the most commonly reported injuries amongst children and youth involved in sport participation. Following a concussion, youth can experience a range of short and long term neurobehavioral symptoms (somatic, cognitive and emotional/behavioral) that can have a significant impact on one's participation in daily activities and pursuits of interest (e.g., school, sports, work, family/social life, etc.). Despite this, there remains a paucity in clinically driven research aimed specifically at exploring concussion within the youth sport population, and more specifically, multi-modal approaches to measuring recovery. This article provides an overview of a novel and multi-modal approach to measuring recovery amongst youth athletes following concussion. The presented approach involves the use of both pre-injury/baseline testing and postinjury/follow-up testing to assess performance across a wide variety of domains (post-concussion symptoms, cognition, balance, strength, agility/ motor skills and resting state heart rate variability). The goal of this research is to gain a more objective and accurate understanding of recovery following concussion in youth athletes (ages 10-18 years). Findings from this research can help to inform the development and use of improved approaches to concussion management and rehabilitation specific to the youth sport community. Video LinkThe video component of this article can be found at

ObjectivesFollowing youth concussion, objective physiological indicators are needed to corroborate changes in subjective clinical measures. The objectives of the current study were to: (1) explore the effect of concussion on heart rate variability (HRV) across days postinjury in youth athletes aged 13–18 years old, compared with healthy age-matched and sex-matched controls and (2) examine the relationship between postconcussion symptom domains (physical, cognitive, fatigue and emotional) and HRV.MethodsProspective, longitudinal, case-control study (N=44). This study comprised 29 concussed athletes between the ages of 13 and 18 years old (21 females, 8 males) and 15 age-matched and sex-matched controls). All participants completed baseline testing, which included demographic information (age, sex, concussion history), self-reported concussion symptoms (Post-Concussion Symptom Inventory [PCSI]) and a 24-hour heart rate recording via the Polar RS800CX system. The PCSI and HRV were collected weekly while the participant was symptomatic and then 1, 3 and 6 months following symptom resolution. HRV variables included time and frequency domain measures. Data visualisations and mixed effects modelling were used to derive parsimonious models.ResultsHRV increased across days postinjury. Concussion symptom domains (physical, cognitive, fatigue and emotional) all had a significant main effect on HRV; concussed participants who reported more symptoms had higher HRV compared with those who reported fewer symptoms. Visualisations of HRV depict the recovery trajectory as non-linear across time. No significant differences on HRV measures were found between concussed and control participants.ConclusionThese preliminary findings provide the foundation to understand the varied trajectory and relationship between objective physiological measures and subjective symptom reporting.

There is growing interest in evaluating body composition using routine clinical computed tomography (CT) scans; however, the validity of this technique in lung transplant patients has not been described. The study objectives were to determine the reliability of measuring fat compartments from thoracic CT and evaluate the validity of muscle and fat cross‐sectional area (CSA) from thoracic CT by comparing to bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). Thoracic CT scans from lung transplant assessments were obtained for analysis. Total thoracic muscle CSA, pectoral muscle CSA, subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), and mediastinal adipose tissue (MAT) were manually segmented by two independent raters. Reliability was analysed using intra‐class correlation coefficient (ICC). Correlations were determined between CT measures with fat‐free mass index (FFMI), body fat mass index (BFMI) and per cent body fat (%BF) from BIA; and anthropometrics [body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC)]. High inter‐ and intra‐rater reliability were found for SAT and MAT (ICCs = 0.99). Pectoral and total muscle CSA were correlated with FFMI (r = .41, p = .003 and r = .57, p < .001, respectively). SAT was associated with whole‐body fat from BIA and with BMI and WC (r = .61 to .80, p < .001). MAT was associated with BMI (r = .58, p < .001) and WC (r = .61, p < .001). This study supports the reliability and validity of using thoracic CT to measure muscle and fat. Future studies are needed to investigate whether these CT‐based measures are predictive of clinical and post‐transplant outcomes in advanced lung disease.

BackgroundHeart rate variability (HRV) is a non-invasive neurophysiological measure of autonomic nervous system regulation emerging in concussion research. To date, most concussion studies have focused on the university-aged athlete with no research examining healthy active youths. Corroborating changes in HRV alongside traditional subjective self-report measures (concussion symptoms) in the non-concussed state provides a foundation for interpreting change following concussion. The objectives were to (1) explore the influence of age and sex on HRV and (2) examine the relationship between HRV and baseline/pre-injury concussion symptom domains (physical, cognitive, emotional, and fatigue) in healthy youth athletes.MethodHealthy, youth athletes 13–18 years of age [N = 294, female = 166 (56.5%), male = 128 (43.5%)] participated in this cross-sectional study. Age, sex, and concussion-like symptoms were collected as part of a baseline/pre-injury assessment. The Post-Concussion Symptom Inventory-SR13 (PCSI-SR13) was used to collect domain scores for physical, cognitive, emotional, and fatigue symptoms. HRV was collected for 24 h. HRV measures included time (SDNN, RMSSD, and pNN50) and frequency (HF, HFnu, LF, LFnu, and total power) domain HRV measures. Variables were logarithmically transformed to increase robustness of linear regression models.ResultsOlder youth participants displayed significantly higher HRV compared to younger participants (p < 0.05). Females displayed significantly lower HRV compared to males (p < 0.05). A significant interaction effect between concussion-like symptoms and HRV indicated differential patterns as a function of sex (p < 0.05). Youth athletes who reported more cognitive symptoms had lower HRV (p < 0.05).ConclusionHRV was found to have a significant relationship with a traditional clinical measure (subjective self-report of concussion-like symptoms) utilized in concussion assessment and management. Baseline/pre-concussion trends in HRV were significantly associated with age and sex, highlighting the value in understanding key demographic factors within the context of concussion-like symptoms.

Participation in organized sports makes a significant contribution to youth development, but places youth at a higher risk for sustaining a concussion. To date, return-to-activity decision-making has been anchored in the monitoring of self-reported concussion symptoms and neurocognitive testing. However, multi-modal assessments that corroborate objective physiological measures with traditional subjective symptom reporting are needed and can be valuable. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a non-invasive physiological indicator of the autonomic nervous system, capturing the reciprocal interplay between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. There is a dearth of literature exploring the effect of concussion on HRV in youth athletes, and developmental differences preclude the application of adult findings to a pediatric population. Further, the current state of HRV methodology has primarily included short-term (5-15 min) recordings, by using resting state or short-term physical exertion testing to elucidate changes following concussion. The novelty in utilizing a 24 h recording methodology is that it has the potential to capture natural variation in autonomic function, directly related to the activities a youth athlete performs on a regular basis. Within a prospective, longitudinal research setting, this novel approach to quantifying autonomic function can provide important information regarding the recovery trajectory, alongside traditional self-report symptom measures. Our objectives regarding a 24 h recording methodology were to (1) evaluate the physiological effects of a concussion in youth athletes, and (2) describe the trajectory of physiological change, while considering the resolution of self-reported post-concussion symptoms. To achieve these objectives, non-invasive sensor technology was implemented. The raw beat-to-beat time intervals captured can be transformed to derive time domain and frequency domain measures, which reflect an individual's ability to adapt and be flexible to their ever-changing environment. By using non-invasive heart rate technology, autonomic function can be quantified outside of a traditional controlled research setting.

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Objective(1) Explore the influence of age, sex on heart rate variability (HRV) in youth athletes; (2) Examine the relationship between baseline/pre-injury concussion symptom domains (physical, cognitive, emotional, fatigue) and HRVDesignCross-sectional.SettingPre-injury/baseline data was obtained from youth athletes across various sports in the Greater Toronto Area.ParticipantsYouth athletes between 13–18 years of age (N=294), in which females and males were equally represented across age groups. Inclusion criteria: between 13–18 years old, English speaking. Exclusion criteria: developmental and neurological diagnoses.InterventionIndependent variables of interest included demographic factors such as age and sex as well as concussion symptoms. Concussion symptoms were measured using the Post Concussion Symptom Inventory and were stratified by physical, cognitive, fatigue and emotional domains.Outcome measuresHeart rate variability, collected over 24 hours was the main outcome of interest and included time (e.g. SDNN, RMSSD) and frequency domain measures (e.g. HF, Total Power). Variables were logarithmically transformed to increase robustness of linear regression models.Main resultsStatistical threshold set at p ≤ 0.05. Significant age effects revealed that older participants displayed higher HRV compared to younger athletes. Significant interaction effect between concussion symptoms and sex on HRV. Cognitive and fatigue symptoms in healthy youth athletes had significant effect on HRV.ConclusionsThis study highlights the potential value of a novel neurophysiological indicator used in conjunction with the self-report of symptoms for clinical management. Prospective longitudinal research is needed to further explore the multi-faceted contextual influences of a youth athlete’s environment.Competing interestsNone.