The consideration of post-exercise impact on SCAT3 scores in athletes immediately following a head injury

Figures & data

Table 1. Distribution of age and sex among players who just play a match.

Demographics
	Head Injury	Control	Total (N)
Men	52	90	142
Women	28	39	67
Total	80	129	209
Age Mean (S.D.)	31.2(13.1)	33.9(12.9)	32.9(13)

Table 2. Descriptive Statistics for players with a head injury and control players separated by Sex. The mean and standard deviation for the classified players with a head injury and control players are reported.

Descriptive Statistics
	Head Injury				Control
	Men		Women		Men		Women
	Mean	S.D	Mean	S.D	Mean	S.D	Mean	S.D
Headache	1.80	1.43	2.43	1.35	0.43	0.86	0.77	1.13
Pressure in the Head	1.44	1.58	2.18	1.52	0.47	0.97	0.90	1.23
Neck Pain	1.16	1.57	1.18	1.61	0.87	1.13	1.00	1.36
Nausea/ Vomiting	0.76	1.33	0.89	1.20	0.17	0.63	0.13	0.52
Dizziness	1.30	1.61	1.57	1.50	0.29	0.77	0.28	0.76
Blurred Vision	0.52	1.07	0.50	1.26	0.09	0.36	0.08	0.35
Balance Problems	0.82	1.19	1.11	1.50	0.37	0.96	0.18	0.51
Sensitivity to Light	1.00	1.54	1.11	1.75	0.27	0.72	0.28	0.65
Sensitivity to Noise	0.64	1.21	0.96	1.48	0.12	0.45	0.03	0.16
Feeling Slowed Down	1.92	1.71	1.96	1.93	0.52	1.08	0.36	0.93
Feeling Like Fog	1.46	1.54	1.25	1.80	0.34	0.94	0.26	0.75
Don’t Feel Right	1.82	1.67	2.39	1.95	0.34	0.91	0.18	0.51
Difficulty Concentrating	1.62	1.63	1.64	1.52	0.42	0.96	0.41	0.91
Difficulty Remembering	1.62	1.76	1.32	1.54	0.51	0.96	0.46	1.00
Fatigue	1.70	1.76	1.86	1.72	1.00	1.37	1.18	1.54
Confusion	1.32	1.57	0.75	0.97	0.22	0.60	0.13	0.52
Drowsiness	1.18	1.45	1.54	1.64	0.49	1.04	0.67	1.36
Trouble Falling Asleep	0.33	1.01	0.18	0.61	0.49	1.15	0.36	1.01
More Emotional	0.44	0.86	1.18	1.98	0.36	1.00	0.23	0.74
Irritable	0.68	1.06	0.68	1.47	0.38	0.96	0.28	0.79
Sad	0.60	1.16	1.00	1.78	0.20	0.71	0.44	1.29
Nervous Anxious	0.82	1.18	0.68	1.19	0.57	1.18	0.49	1.21

Figure 1. SCAT3 Components in players with a head injury and control players. Depicts the total number of symptoms (Z = −7.61, P < 0.001), total symptom severity (Z = −7.89, P < 0.001), SAC total (Z = −2.46, P = 0.007), and BESS total (Z = −0.32, P = 0.739) among players with a head injury and control players. Mann-Whitney U results for the SCAT3 components.

p < 0.05*, p < 0.01**, p < 0.001***.

Table 3. Table 3 Mann-Whitney U-Test results for the SCAT3 components in players with a head injury and control players.

Mann-Whitney U-Test on players with a head injury and control players
	Head Injury Median	Control Median	Head Injury IQR	Control IQR	Mann- Whitney U	Effect Size (r)	P-Value
Total # Symptoms	11	3	8	4	1842	−0.53	0.000***
Symptom Severity	23	6	25	8.5	1724	−0.55	0.000***
BESS total	5	5	7	6	4283	−0.02	0.739
SAC Total	25	26	5	3	2737	−0.21	0.007

***p < 0.001.

Figure 2. Principal Component Analysis: An illustration of the factor clusters. 4 factor solutions derived from the SCAT3 symptom ratings performed by rugby players who just played a match. Refer to Supplemental Table 2 for detailed factor loadings. Cross-loading symptoms are bolded.

Figure 3. Depicts the mean scores of the 4 symptom clusters: a) Headache (Z = 8.66, P < 0.001);,  b) Hypersensitive (Z = 4.64, P < 0.001);     c) Cognitive-Sensory (Z = 7.14, P < 0.001), and d) Emotional Affective (Z = 3.29, P = 0.001) among the identified control and players with a head injury. Mann-Whitney U results for the SCAT3 Symptom Clusters.

p < 0.05*, p < 0.01**, p < 0.001***.

Table 4. Regression analysis was performed on the 4-factor solution derived from the SCAT3 symptom ratings to identify which factors are predictive of players who experienced an injury to the head.

Logistic regression on symptom clusters post-game
Factors	OR	95% C.I. for EXP(B)		P- Value
Cognitive	3.29	2.08	5.22	0.000***
Headache	3.43	2.26	5.21	0.000***
Emotional -Affective	0.78	0.54	1.14	0.200
Hypersensitivity	2.00	1.31	3.05	0.000***

***p < 0.001, 2-tailed, Odds Ratio (OR), Confidence Interval (CI).