1. The Effect of Sex and History of Concussion on
King-Devick Baseline Performance
Ryan N. Moran, PhD, ATC1 & Tracey Covassin, PhD, ATC, FNATA2
1North Dakota State University, Fargo ND 2Michigan State University, East Lansing MI
Introduction
Results
Recently, the King-Devick (K-D) has gained popularity as a concussion-screening tool.1,2
Female athletes have been reported to perform better than males on neurocognitive processing speed and reaction time at baseline3-5
High school athletes with a history of concussion have been identified to perform worse on the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 2 (SCAT2) at baseline6, although no difference on the K-D test7
Further investigation is needed on the risk factors of sex and a history of concussion in youth athletes
Mann-U: , p < Mann-U: 593.0, p = .18
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of sex and a history of concussion on baseline K-D time and errors.
Methods
A total of 422 youth football and soccer athletes between the ages of 8 and 14 completed a pre-season baseline K-D test prior to the start of their respective season.
38 Individuals who reported a diagnosed history of concussion were match controlled, based on sex, age, sport, height, and weight to 38 individuals with a history of concussion.
The K-D test was performed twice, with the fastest of the trials recorded as their total baseline time, while total errors per trial were recorded, as well.
A series of Mann-Whitney U analyses were used to determine differences between sex and a history of concussion with the p values set at .05.
Discussion
References
1 Galetta, K., Brandes, L., Maki, K., Dziemianowicz, M., Laudano, E., Allen, M., & Lawler, K. et al. (2011). The King-Devick test and sports-related concussion: study of a rapid visual screening tool in a collegiate cohort. Journal of Neurological Sciences, 309(1-2), 34-39
2 Galetta, K., Morganroth, J., Moehringer, N., Mueller, B., Hasanaj, L., Webb, N., & Civitano, C. et al., (2015). Adding vision to concussion testing: a prospective study of sideline testing in youth and collegiate athletes. Journal of Neuro-opthalmology,35(3),
3 Broglio, S., Cantu, R., Gioia, G., Guskiewicz, K., Kutcher, J., Palm, M., & McLeod, T. (2014). National athletic trainers’ association position statement: management of sport concussion. Journal of Athletic Training, 49(2),
4 Covassin, T., Swanik, B., Sachs, M., Kendrick, Z., Schatz, P., Zillmer, & Kaminaris, C. (2006). Sex differences in baseline neuropsychological function and concussion symptoms of collegiate athletes. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 40(11),
5 Covassin, T., Elbin, R., Kontos, A., & Larson, E. (2010). Investigating baseline neurocognitive performance between male and female athletes with a history of multiple concussion. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 81(6),
6 Valovich McLeod, T., Bay, C., Lam, K., & Chhabra, A. (2012). Representative baseline values on the sport concussion assessment tool 2 (SCAT2) in adolescent athletes vary by gender, grade, and concussion history. American Journal of Sports Medicine, 40(4),
7 Alsalaheen, B., Haines, J., Yorke, A., & Diebold, J. (2015). King-Devick test reference values and associations with balance measures in high school American football players. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 26(2),
8 Burton, L., Henninger, D., & Hafetz, J. (2005). Gender differences in relations of mental rotation, verbal fluency, and SAT scores to finger length ratios as hormonal indexes. Developmental Neuropsychology, 28(1),
9 Weiss, E., Kemmlera, G., Deisenhammerb, E., Fleischhackera, W., & Delazer, M. (2003). Sex differences in cognitive function. Personality and Individual Differences, 35(4),
This is believed to be the first study to examine and report sex differences on the K-D test at baseline in youth athletes
While no previous literature has examined sex differences on the K-D test, similar vision and ocular function research can constitute for sex differences5 along with females having faster language development and speech fluency8,9
It can be speculated that the ocular motor system, specifically saccadic eye movement, does not suffer from effects that may be suspected of previous concussions and on-going developing brains may not suffer the same effects as an adult’s myelinated brain
Future research is needed on post-injury outcomes along with long-term reliability of the K-D test
Disclosure: This study was funded by the College of Education Dissertation Development Fellowship and Kinesiology Research Enhancement Award