A newly-launched study at a B.C. university is taking concussion research to a place it鈥檚 never been before 鈥� the world of women鈥檚 hockey.

Players from the school鈥檚 teams will start wearing high-tech mouthguards this spring to capture data for University of B.C. researchers who study concussions.

Experts will explore on-ice head injuries in both men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 hockey.

The women鈥檚 game, however, is an area of research that has been understudied, according to Dr. Lyndia Wu, an expert in brain injury biomechanics at UBC鈥檚 faculty of applied science.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lack of women鈥檚 sports data,鈥� she said.

鈥淕iven that ice hockey is a high-concussion incident sport, it鈥檚 a good idea to expand to this population.鈥�

Wu told Black Press that past research has shown women in sports tend to have a lower tolerance for getting concussed, as well as a longer recovery profile compared to their male counterparts.

Before arriving at UBC, Wu conducted similar research for the football team at Stanford University in California while working on her PhD.

Sports concussion research conducted globally 鈥� up until this point 鈥� has been primarily allocated to the men鈥檚 side of the coin.

But the new B.C.-based study is determined to investigate the differences between men and women hockey players when head injuries are suffered, as well as the potential long-term effects that come along with it.

鈥淭here鈥檚 been not enough research on female athletes who鈥檝e suffered a sport-related concussion, and so looking at and comparing to male athletes will potentially provide some insight into the sex differences that occur,鈥� said Dr. Paul van Donkelaar, a professor in the school of health and exercise sciences at UBC鈥檚 Okanagan campus.

Sensors built inside the mouthguards will capture the speed and direction of bodychecks on the ice, with data live-streamed in realtime to a research tablet.

鈥淚f anyone has watched women鈥檚 hockey at its highest level, they know it鈥檚 physical,鈥� said UBC Thunderbirds women鈥檚 hockey head coach Graham Thomas.

鈥淭he technology in this mouthguard has never been seen before,鈥� Thomas added.

As part of the pending five-year project, players will be given periodic assessment tests that track their brain health over time, based on the data collected through the newly-developed mouthguards.

鈥淪evere hits to the head are what most people are aware of, but even milder hits may have significant effects if they happen multiple times over the years,鈥� said Dr. Alexander Rauscher, an associate professor in the department of pediatrics.

An undisclosed number of players will begin wearing the mouthguards immediately, in time for the Thunderbirds鈥� upcoming playoff schedule.

Thomas, who recently led the school鈥檚 women鈥檚 team to a Canada West title, told Black Press that despite some reluctancy from select players, he expects more and more to participate in the research project by next season.

鈥淚f we could get more data and be part of future change, then that鈥檚 always a good thing.鈥�

logan.lockhart@pentictonwesternnews.com
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