Concussion Characteristics in the National Hockey League Before and After the Introduction of Rule 48.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

A rule prohibiting a direct hit to the lateral side of the head (ie, Rule 48-Illegal Check to the Head) was introduced in the National Hockey League (NHL) in the 2010-2011 season and refined in the 2011-2012 season to widen the application to include direct contact to all areas of the head.

Objective

To compare the incidence and proportion of concussions that occurred following hits to the head before and after the implementation of Rule 48.

Design, setting, and participants

This retrospective cohort study used a before and after design to evaluate concussions among NHL players in regular season games. Data from the 4 seasons preceding the implementation of Rule 48 (2006-2007 to 2009-2010) were compared with data from 5 seasons following its implementation

SUBMITTER: Hutchison MG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10665971 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature