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Updated: Aug 10, 2026
A Neuroscientific Approach to the Examination of Concussions in Student-Athletes
Published on: December 8, 2014
Baseline Postural Control and Lower Extremity Injury Incidence Among Those With a History of Concussion
Nicholas Murray1, Emily Belson2, Brian Szekely3
1School of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno.
Context:
Lower extremity musculoskeletal (LEMSK) injury may be more prevalent among those with a history of sport-related concussion (SRC).
Objective:
To investigate the relationship between baseline postural control metrics and the LEMSK injury incidence in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I student-athletes with a history of SRC.
Setting:
National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I athletes.
Design:
Cohort study.
Patients Or Other Participants:
Of 84 total athletes (62 males), 42 had been previously diagnosed with an SRC, and 42 were matched controls based on age, sex, height, weight, and sport.
Main Outcome Measure(S):
During the preseason baseline evaluation, all participants performed 3 trials of eyes-open and eyes-closed upright quiet stance on a force platform. Medical charts were assessed for all the LEMSK injuries that occurred from preseason baseline to 1 year later. Center-of-pressure data in the anteroposterior and mediolateral directions were filtered before we calculated root mean square and mean excursion velocity; the complexity index was calculated from the unfiltered data. Factorial analysis-of-variance models were used to examine differences between groups and across conditions for root mean square; mean excursion velocity, complexity index, and tests of association to examine between-groups LEMSK differences; and logistic regression models to predict LEMSK.
Results:
Concussion history and injury incidence were related in the SRC group (P = .043). The complexity index of the SRC group was lower with eyes closed (14.08 ± 0.63 versus 15.93 ± 0.52) and eyes open (10.25 ± 0.52 vs 11.80 ± 0.57) in the mediolateral direction than for the control participants (P < .05). Eyes-open root mean square in the mediolateral direction was greater for the SRC group (5.00 ± 0.28 mm) than the control group (4.10 ± 0.22 mm). Logistic regression models significantly predicted LEMSK only in control participants.
Conclusions:
These findings may suggest that LEMSK after SRC cannot be predicted from postural-control metrics at baseline.
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