Our next poster is titled Characterization of Concussions in the National Basketball Association and the 90-day Period Following Return to Play: Analysis of Musculoskeletal Injury Risk and Player Performance. This study was performed at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona and sought to determine the incidence of musculoskeletal injury in the immediate 90-day period following return to play from concussion.  The secondary outcomes were to evaluate player performance within the 90-day.  As well as time lost after musculoskeletal injury.

Concussions have steadily garnered increased attention over recent years. We actually did an episode with Dr. Rachel Frank focused on concussions and sideline evaluation.  This is episode 98 if you want to go check it out.  That episode focused primarily on identifying and appropriately managing concussions.  This study aims to evaluate the impact of a concussion on risk of musculoskeletal injury. 

Concussions have previously been shown to have persistent neurological effects that may lead to slower reaction times and may compromise postural stability in high-level athletes. Therefore, it stands to reason that a player may be at greater risk for musculoskeletal injury and may exhibit poorer performance upon return from a concussion.

The authors identified NBA players who sustained a concussion between 2015-20 22 using a publicly available database.  The database was also queried to identify any musculoskeletal injury in the 90-day period following return to play after the concussion, as well as time lost after the subsequent injury. 

Performance statistics were obtained from each players preinjury season and post-injury season.  Each concussed player was matched with a non-concussed control player using position, win shares, player efficiency rating and points per game as metrics.

So, what did this study find?  A total of 70 concussions were identified during this time period. 70% of concussed players sustained a musculoskeletal injury in the 90-day period following return to play.  Compared with controls, the odds of sustaining a musculoskeletal injury in the concussed cohort were 11.3 times greater.  There was no significant difference between the type and location of injury, with ankle injuries being the most common in both groups.

Now let’s talk about performance.  Interestingly, there were no significant changes in points per game, minutes played per game or true shooting percentage between the concussed and control groups.  When compared with the controls, no changes in performance statistics were significantly different. Games missed after subsequent musculoskeletal injury were similar between the concussed and control groups.