Article ID: 2025.003
American football (AF) has a high incidence of sports-related concussions (SRC), raising concerns about the long-term effects on neuromuscular function. This study aimed to compare the cortical silent period (cSP) and the strength of the cervical muscles to investigate neuromuscular function in patients with SRC. All 38 participants were males, including 12 AF players with a history of SRC, 9 AF players without a history of SRC, and 17 normal healthy males with no experience in contact sports. Cervical muscle strength was measured with a hand-held dynamometer. cSP was measured using transcranial magnetic stimulation. Electromyography was obtained from the upper trapezius muscle. AF players demonstrated stronger cervical muscle strength than the control group. No significant differences were observed in corticospinal excitability among the groups. AF players with a history of SRC demonstrated a significantly longer cSP than the control group (80.5 ± 27.8 ms vs. 113.1 ± 35.1 ms) (F (2, 32) = 3.66, p < .05). These results suggest that cortical inhibition of the cervical muscle is enhanced in AF players with a history of SRC. This could lead to neuromuscular dysfunction of the cervical muscles and should be considered an important factor in preventing recurrent SRC.
