Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 4, 2026

Modified Drop Tower Impact Tests for American Football Helmets
Published on: February 19, 2017
Reduced cortical excitability is associated with head impact severity and cognitive symptoms in adolescent football
Kevin C Yu1,2,3, Alex I Wiesman4,5, Elizabeth M Davenport6
1Radiology Informatics and Image Processing Laboratory, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
Abstract:
American tackle football is associated with high rates of concussion, leading to neurophysiological disturbances and debilitating clinical symptoms, but previous investigations have largely ignored aperiodic neurophysiological activity. In this study, we use pre- and post-season resting-state magnetoencephalography (MEG) to examine whether concussion during a season of football is related to changes in neurophysiology and whether any such changes are associated with clinical outcomes. Concussion was associated with increased aperiodic exponents in superior frontal cortices, indicating a relative reduction in cortical excitability, which accounted for effects on raw delta and gamma power and was associated with worse cognitive concerns across participants. Subtler effects of non-concussive head-impact exposure on neurophysiology were similar to those of concussion. These findings indicate that concussion alters the excitability of the cortex, similar to much more subtle effects of non-concussive exposure.
More Related Videos
06:58Highlighting and Reducing the Impact of Negative Aging Stereotypes During Older Adults' Cognitive Testing
Published on: January 24, 2020
07:02An Investigation of the Effects of Sports-related Concussion in Youth Using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging and the Head Impact Telemetry System
Published on: January 12, 2011
Related Concept Videos
Cognitive Development During Adolescence
Negative and Cognitive Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Negative Symptoms
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia manifest as deficits in normal emotional and behavioral functioning, profoundly impacting daily life. Individuals with schizophrenia often display a flat affect, characterized by a near-total absence of emotional expression,...
Revisionist Views of Adolescent and Adult Cognition
Cognitive Dissonance
Impact of Groups on Groups
Diabetes: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Complications