Rough play is riskier than heading in youth soccer: Study
Jul 13, 2015, 10:12 AM
FILE - In this Feb. 20, 2014 file photo, Sam Schneider, left, practices with his U16-9798 Premiere club soccer team at St. Louis Soccer Park in St. Louis, Mo. A study published Monday, July 13, 2015, in the journal JAMA Pediatrics of U.S. high school games found that over 1 in 4 concussions occurred when players used their head to hit the ball. But more than half of these heading-related concussions were caused by collisions with another player rather than with the ball. (Sarah Conrad/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP) EDWARDSVILLE INTELLIGENCER OUT; THE ALTON TELEGRAPH OUT
(Sarah Conrad/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)
CHICAGO (AP) — Heading takes the heat in youth soccer, but a study says limiting rough play might be a better way to prevent concussions and other injuries.
The nine-year look at U.S. high school games found that over 1 in 4 concussions occurred when players used their head to hit the ball. But more than half of these heading-related concussions were caused by collisions with another player rather than with the ball. These included head-to-head, elbow-to-head and shoulder-to-head contact.
Dawn Comstock is a University of Colorado public health researcher who led the study. She says soccer rules prohibit most player-to-player contact and notes that rough play has become more common at all levels of the game.
The study was published Monday in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.
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