Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units

Introduction Ice hockey can lead to high-energy collisions and traumas and is a sport with high risk of concussion (Ornon et al., 2020). Concussions represent 2–14% of all hockey injuries (Izraelski, 2014). Sports-related concussions (SRC) sustained in professional ice hockey are a common in-compet...

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Main Authors: Julia Müller, Noah Köppel, Patrick Eggenberger, Emanuel Brunner, Thomas Weber, Eling D. de Bruin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Bern Open Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:Current Issues in Sport Science
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Online Access:https://ciss-journal.org/article/view/12002
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author Julia Müller
Noah Köppel
Patrick Eggenberger
Emanuel Brunner
Thomas Weber
Eling D. de Bruin
author_facet Julia Müller
Noah Köppel
Patrick Eggenberger
Emanuel Brunner
Thomas Weber
Eling D. de Bruin
author_sort Julia Müller
collection DOAJ
description Introduction Ice hockey can lead to high-energy collisions and traumas and is a sport with high risk of concussion (Ornon et al., 2020). Concussions represent 2–14% of all hockey injuries (Izraelski, 2014). Sports-related concussions (SRC) sustained in professional ice hockey are a common in-competition injury leading to highly individual return to sport that can be associated with symptoms lasting days to months (Höllerer et al., 2023). Following SRC there is an increased risk of subsequent concussion and musculoskeletal injury upon return to play, however, assessments that can detect subclinical changes in function following a concussion are lacking (Dunne et al., 2023). A COSMIN systematic review suggests gait-based assessments using inertial measurement units to capture pre-concussion baseline scores (Dunne et al., 2023). This study measured pre-season pre-concussion gait data in Swiss National League Ice hockey players. Baseline scores will be compared with measures from players sustaining in-season SRC. Methods Temporal and spatial gait parameters were measured with the Physilog (https://www.physilog.com/ , Lausanne, Switzerland) movement sensors. The sensors were fixed to the shoes for flat overground gait analysis. Over a 20-30 m walkway, participants performed a single-task (ST) walking condition (preferred gait speed) and a dual-task (DT) walking condition, i.e., preferred gait speed whilst counting backwards. Application of the dual-task paradigm aimed at quantifying the automaticity of movement (Soulard et al., 2021). The focus of this study was on gait speed, cadence (+ cv%), and stride length (+ cv%) (Dunne et al., 2023). Results Thirteen male National League players from SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, 21.9 ± 3.1 years, 182.5 ± 5.9 cm height, 83.3 ± 7.6 kg body weight performed a pre-season gait analysis. The players sustained 1.5 ± 1.4 [range 0 – 3] concussions in the past. ST/DT walking revealed a walking speed of 1.3 ± 0.14/1.12 ± 0.14 m/s; step length 0.72 ± 0.09/0.67 ± 0.07 m; step length coefficient of variation (cv, %) 5.4 ± 1.9/5.6 ± 1.4 %; cadence 106.7 ± 5.1/100.5 ± 5.7 steps/min; cadence cv 2.8 ± 1/2.9 ± 0.9 %. Discussion/Conclusion Our results will shed light on the reliability and validity of using inertial measurements in the context of concussion management. Practitioners can use this resource at their disposal to help make informed decisions regarding concussion management. References Dunne, L. A. M., et al. (2023). Validity and reliability of methods to assess movement deficiencies following concussion: A COSMIN systematic review. Sports Medicine - Open, 9, 76. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-023-00625-0 Höllerer, D., et al. (2023). Injury incidence, outcomes, and return to competition times after sports-related concussions during one professional ice hockey season: A prospective cohort study. Healthcare, 11, 3153. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11243153 Izraelski, J. (2014). Concussions in the NHL: A narrative review of the literature. Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 58(4), 346–352. Ornon, G., et al. (2020). Epidemiology of injuries in professional ice hockey: A prospective study over seven years. Journal of Experimental Orthopaedics, 7, 87. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40634-020-00300-3 Soulard, J., et al. (2021). Spatio-temporal gait parameters obtained from foot-worn inertial sensors are reliable in healthy adults in single- and dual-task conditions. Scientific Reports, 11, 10229. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-88794-4
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spelling doaj-art-167186345c29462eab80b05b50ef1c1a2025-02-04T03:15:15ZengBern Open PublishingCurrent Issues in Sport Science2414-66412025-01-0110210.36950/2025.2ciss029Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement UnitsJulia Müller0Noah Köppel1Patrick Eggenberger2Emanuel Brunner3Thomas Weber4Eling D. de Bruin5Department Health, Eastern Swiss University of Applied Sciences - OST, SwitzerlandDepartment Health, Eastern Swiss University of Applied Sciences - OST, SwitzerlandDepartment Health, Eastern Swiss University of Applied Sciences - OST, Switzerland & Department Health Sciences and Technology, ETH Zurich, SwitzerlandDepartment Health, Eastern Swiss University of Applied Sciences - OST, SwitzerlandSC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers Ice Hockey Club, SwitzerlandDepartment Health, Eastern Swiss University of Applied Sciences - OST, Switzerland & Department Health Sciences and Technology, ETH Zurich, Switzerland Introduction Ice hockey can lead to high-energy collisions and traumas and is a sport with high risk of concussion (Ornon et al., 2020). Concussions represent 2–14% of all hockey injuries (Izraelski, 2014). Sports-related concussions (SRC) sustained in professional ice hockey are a common in-competition injury leading to highly individual return to sport that can be associated with symptoms lasting days to months (Höllerer et al., 2023). Following SRC there is an increased risk of subsequent concussion and musculoskeletal injury upon return to play, however, assessments that can detect subclinical changes in function following a concussion are lacking (Dunne et al., 2023). A COSMIN systematic review suggests gait-based assessments using inertial measurement units to capture pre-concussion baseline scores (Dunne et al., 2023). This study measured pre-season pre-concussion gait data in Swiss National League Ice hockey players. Baseline scores will be compared with measures from players sustaining in-season SRC. Methods Temporal and spatial gait parameters were measured with the Physilog (https://www.physilog.com/ , Lausanne, Switzerland) movement sensors. The sensors were fixed to the shoes for flat overground gait analysis. Over a 20-30 m walkway, participants performed a single-task (ST) walking condition (preferred gait speed) and a dual-task (DT) walking condition, i.e., preferred gait speed whilst counting backwards. Application of the dual-task paradigm aimed at quantifying the automaticity of movement (Soulard et al., 2021). The focus of this study was on gait speed, cadence (+ cv%), and stride length (+ cv%) (Dunne et al., 2023). Results Thirteen male National League players from SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, 21.9 ± 3.1 years, 182.5 ± 5.9 cm height, 83.3 ± 7.6 kg body weight performed a pre-season gait analysis. The players sustained 1.5 ± 1.4 [range 0 – 3] concussions in the past. ST/DT walking revealed a walking speed of 1.3 ± 0.14/1.12 ± 0.14 m/s; step length 0.72 ± 0.09/0.67 ± 0.07 m; step length coefficient of variation (cv, %) 5.4 ± 1.9/5.6 ± 1.4 %; cadence 106.7 ± 5.1/100.5 ± 5.7 steps/min; cadence cv 2.8 ± 1/2.9 ± 0.9 %. Discussion/Conclusion Our results will shed light on the reliability and validity of using inertial measurements in the context of concussion management. Practitioners can use this resource at their disposal to help make informed decisions regarding concussion management. References Dunne, L. A. M., et al. (2023). Validity and reliability of methods to assess movement deficiencies following concussion: A COSMIN systematic review. Sports Medicine - Open, 9, 76. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-023-00625-0 Höllerer, D., et al. (2023). Injury incidence, outcomes, and return to competition times after sports-related concussions during one professional ice hockey season: A prospective cohort study. Healthcare, 11, 3153. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11243153 Izraelski, J. (2014). Concussions in the NHL: A narrative review of the literature. Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 58(4), 346–352. Ornon, G., et al. (2020). Epidemiology of injuries in professional ice hockey: A prospective study over seven years. Journal of Experimental Orthopaedics, 7, 87. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40634-020-00300-3 Soulard, J., et al. (2021). Spatio-temporal gait parameters obtained from foot-worn inertial sensors are reliable in healthy adults in single- and dual-task conditions. Scientific Reports, 11, 10229. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-88794-4 https://ciss-journal.org/article/view/12002concussiongait analysissubclinical changeinertial measurement unit
spellingShingle Julia Müller
Noah Köppel
Patrick Eggenberger
Emanuel Brunner
Thomas Weber
Eling D. de Bruin
Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units
Current Issues in Sport Science
concussion
gait analysis
subclinical change
inertial measurement unit
title Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units
title_full Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units
title_fullStr Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units
title_full_unstemmed Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units
title_short Navigating the Ice: Establishing Pre-Concussion Baselines in Ice-Hockey Players for Gait Assessment Utilizing Inertial Measurement Units
title_sort navigating the ice establishing pre concussion baselines in ice hockey players for gait assessment utilizing inertial measurement units
topic concussion
gait analysis
subclinical change
inertial measurement unit
url https://ciss-journal.org/article/view/12002
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