New research suggests football helmets may not efficiently protect the side of the head or rotational force, which is a major source of brain injury.
"Protection against concussion and complications of brain injury is especially important for young players, including elementary and middle school, high school and college athletes, whose still-developing brains are more susceptible to the lasting effects of trauma," study co- author Frank Conidi, MD, DO, MS, director of the Florida Center for Headache and Sports Neurology and Assistant Clinical Professor of Neurology at Florida State University College of Medicine and vice chair of the American Academy of Neurology's Sports Neurology Section said in an American Academy of Neurology news release.
In order to make their findings the researchers modified the standard drop test system that looks at helmet safety.
The team used the head and neck of a crash test dummy that was fitted with sensors designed to measure the damage inflicted by a 12-mile-per hour impact. The team conducted 330 tests to determine how well 10 football helmets protected against brain injury.
The designs included: "Adams a2000, Rawlings Quantum, Riddell 360, Riddell Revolution, Riddell Revolution Speed, Riddell VSR4, Schutt Air Advantage, Schutt DNA Pro+, Xenith X1 and Xenith X2," the news release reported. The Adams a2000 had the most protection against concussion; the Riddell 360 offered the most protection against closed head injury while the Adamsa2000 offered the least.
The team found the helmets protected against brain injury only about 20 percent more than if the players did not wear a helmet at all.
"Alarmingly, those that offered the least protection are among the most popular on the field," Conidi said. "Biomechanics researchers have long understood that rotational forces, not linear forces, are responsible for serious brain damage including concussion, brain injury complications and brain bleeds. Yet generations of football and other sports participants have been under the assumption that their brains are protected by their investment in headwear protection."
