Headgear Significantly Reduces Girls’ Lacrosse Concussions, Landmark UF Health Study Finds
Female high school lacrosse players are significantly less likely to sustain concussions and other injuries if they wear headgear, a landmark study led by University of Florida Health researchers has found.
Girls who play the sport in states that don’t require headgear had a 59% higher concussion rate than players in Florida, the only state with a headgear mandate. The researchers also found lacrosse games were more hazardous than practices: Concussions were 74% higher during competition among players in states without headgear requirements when compared with Florida players.
Those details emerged from data collected during 357,225 games and practices in Florida and other states during three seasons from 2018 to 2021. The findings were presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics national conference.
Within the sport and its governing bodies, the use of headgear among female high school lacrosse players has been debated thoroughly and passionately, said Daniel C. Herman, Ph.D., M.D., who led the research as an assistant professor in the UF College of Medicine’s department of orthopedic surgery and sports medicine. He expects the findings will provide solid, objective guidance to school boards and state athletic associations across the country as well as the sport’s national governing body.
“This will allow people in many different organizations to make evidence-based athlete safety policy choices,” Herman said.
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