Effects of One Season of Rugby on the Neurological Integrity of Male Adolescent Players
Our data suggest that exposure to one season of rugby does not appear to result in neurological compromise. The statistical non-significance reported for the main outcome measure also held when controlling for variables, such as training age and headgear use. Although pre- to post-season differences were statistically non-significant, the long-term effects of high exposure may be of clinical significance going forward. Further research, particularly using longitudinal designs, is needed to further elucidate the potential for microstructural neurological changes in adolescent rugby players.
Authors
- Tim Anderson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0191-0204)
- Nicole Spriggs
- Mike Hamlin
- Danyon Stitt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7139-3660)
- Deborah L. Snell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1664-0603)
- Stefan Henley (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1397-8246)
- Alan Clark
- Keith Alexander (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9887-730X)
- Annette Swale
- Kevin Mangan
- Congyu Xu
- Arindam Basu
- Tracy Melzer
- Nick Draper
- Natalia Kabaliuk
- Rich Masters
- Samantha Holdsworth
Institutions
- California State University, Fullerton (US)
- University of Auckland (NZ)
- Lincoln University (NZ)
- University of Canterbury (NZ)
- Canterbury Health Laboratories (NZ)
- New Zealand Brain Research Institute (NZ)
- Medical Research Institute of New Zealand (NZ)
- Mātai Medical Research Institute
- University of Waikato (NZ)
- University of Otago (NZ)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Sports Medicine - Open
- Published
- 2026-02-24
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-026-00987-1
- Primary Topic
- Traumatic Brain Injury Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00