Assessing Head Injuries

Six teams from the United Rugby Championship have successfully begun a project using instrumented mouth guards from HITIQ aimed at providing new data to assist with head injury management.

URC Grand Finals DHL Stormers are one of three teams participating in the project in South Africa alongside the Vodacom Bulls and Emirates Lions, while Scarlets, Benetton and Edinburgh Rugby are the European-based teams taking part. (Edinburgh’s participation is through a research partnership agreement between Scottish Rugby and HITIQ.)

The sensors embedded in these mouth guards provide objective information on the frequency, intensity, and location of head impacts. This ‘hard data’ plays a crucial role in identifying head impact exposure rates, analysing playing positions, training drills, and individual players.

The metrics provided by the HITIQ system have the potential to assist in the identification and rehabilitation of concussions, as well as assists management of player contact load monitoring in general.

All clubs received visits from the HITIQ team where their players in addition to getting superb education on the technology, had their mouths scanned to provide custom-fit devices. As part of the trial HITIQ have provided 160 units.

The URC is committed to assessing entry points for technology trials or proof of concepts that can help to broaden the tools available for the care and protection of players. The development of instrumented mouth guards has seen trials occur with various suppliers across the world, largely driven by World Rugby, but also within URC unions themselves and in elite rugby in other leagues and with continued cross-property collaboration in the sport the shared learnings should benefit the sport.

Medics and performance teams from all of the teams involved have been enthusiastic about the early performances of the HITIQ mouthguards in practice and what this collection of data can provide in the future.

Dr Michael Dunlop, Edinburgh team doctor and chair of URC Medical Committee, said: “Instrumented mouth guard technology has the potential to give medical and performance staff objective insight into the intensity and frequency of head impacts, both in matches and training.
“Such data would be an additional tool to the concussion recognition, graduated return to play and load management (player welfare in short), processes already in place across the URC and elite Rugby Union. In addition to the guards themselves, there are multiple aspects around this technology which are essential to develop. Over our ‘first’ season, it has been a pleasure to work in partnership with HITIQ around the advancement of many of these, and it is our hope as a league that this partnership can continue.”

Dr Raaghib Fredericks, DHL Stormers: “In terms of player safety, a device and system like the HITiQ can only be beneficial. The more information we can collect, the better for medical management of player welfare and the more objective our decision making can be.
“The data collected is still very raw in nature and we will only really understand its value, once normative values for each contact are established. That being said, the concept is very exciting and looks like it could be the future of player welfare, regarding concussion management.”

Marco Bazo, Physiotherapist, Benetton Rugby: “The URC has shown their willingness to be at the forefront of player welfare initiatives and using the most up to date equipment when it comes to concussion management. HITIQ has provided us with a large dataset from the mouth guards and a lot education. We are able to monitor collision load which informs our return to play processes around concussion and any other head injury.

“Our hope is that for the future they will help with clinical diagnosis of concussion but it requires larger datasets and more clubs around the world using the instrumented mouth guard.”

Martin Anayi, CEO of the United Rugby Championship said: “In a contact sport it is vital to mitigate risks where possible and put a priority on player welfare. Supporting a partnership with HITIQ and our Clubs and Unions to provide access to their innovative instrumented mouthguards to a number of our teams should provide data around head impact incidents so we can gather objective insights.

“It is vital to the sustainability of rugby that we utilise every tool at our disposal to protect our athletes where possible, and hopefully the result of this partnership will bring benefits to players right across our sport in the future and will assist our incredible medical staff throughout our league to support recovery for players who sustain a head injury.”

Mike Vegar, CEO of HITIQ said: “We at HITIQ are thrilled to be a part of the instrumented mouth guard projects with the United Rugby Championship teams. The successful launch of these projects marks a significant milestone in our mission to enhance head injury management in sports.

‘’The collaboration with the URC and the participation of six prominent teams have allowed us to gather valuable data and insights through our sensor technology platform.
I would like to express my gratitude to all the clubs involved for their cooperation and support. The enthusiasm shown by the medics from the participating teams is truly encouraging. Their feedback and endorsement of the HITIQ mouthguards reaffirm the need for this technology in improving player welfare and safety.

‘’We are committed to developing cutting-edge solutions that contribute to the care and protection of athletes. Our partnership with the URC and other rugby organisations has been critical in advancing the field of instrumented mouth guards. By collaborating and sharing learnings, we can collectively drive innovation and make a positive impact on the sport.

‘’I would like to extend my gratitude to the United Rugby Championship for their vision and commitment to player welfare. It is through partnerships like these that we can leverage technology to protect athletes and ensure the long-term sustainability of the sport”