While the "ground-breaking" discovery is currently performed as a lab test, it is hoped in the not-too-distant future it will be transformed into a pitch-side test, that can provide an accurate reading shortly after the concussion has taken place.
Wednesday 24 March 2021 14:28, UK
An "exciting" breakthrough in diagnosing concussion using elite rugby players' saliva samples has been made by researchers.
The Rugby Football Union has spent the last four years taking part in the study, run by the University of Birmingham.
Those who have suffered head injuries at both Premiership and Championship level have had samples taken both during and after a game.
Molecules, otherwise known as biomarkers, found in their saliva identified whether they had suffered from concussion or not.
Testing saliva is less invasive than taking a blood sample, which means it is easier to roll out in sport, both at elite level and in the community.
While the "ground-breaking" discovery is currently performed as a lab test, it is hoped in the not too distant future it will be transformed into a pitch-side test, that can provide an accurate reading shortly after the concussion has taken place.
The RFU's Professor Simon Kemp told Sky Sports News: "Ideally we would like to have a test that could be used at all time points, so that very early time point.
"But we think in the first instance something that could confirm a concussion the next morning would be incredibly valuable and realistically deliverable in a short time scale.
"What we have seen with biomarkers is they change very quickly, so there is the potential to have a test, if we had the technology, that could be used very quickly after someone was removed. But that is not our immediate plan. Our immediate plan is to have one available at 24 hours".
The RFU will be taking part in further trials, which will focus on two upcoming elite men's competitions and a female competition.
Meanwhile, researchers at the University of Birmingham are already in talks with footballing authorities to carry out similar research alongside the concussion substitute pilot that was introduced to the Premier League and the Women's Super League earlier this year.
Neurosurgeon and lead researcher, Professor Tony Belli, said: "Probably the most exciting thing is that this is on a non-invasive fluid.
"A lot of the research done on this type of work for the diagnosis of concussion is done on blood. That is great and we do some of that ourselves, but blood is not something you can do on the pitch-side. In certain situations you need a trained phlebotomist or doctor to take a blood sample. So actually having it in saliva is now in reach of everyone, by having a very simple mouth swab.
"The signal of concussion is really detectable immediately after the event. When rugby players were removed from the pitch immediately and had the first medical assessment, this biomarker of concussion was already there and was measurable".
Professor Belli now plans to carry out additional research looking at the impact concussion has on female athletes. It is hoped this discovery will, in future, help not only those in the sporting world, but also medical experts in emergency departments to diagnose brain trauma in critical patients.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, former Ireland and Lions wing Tommy Bowe said the tests would help towards removing "ambiguity" surrounding concussion.
"It's ground-breaking. There is so much ambiguity at the minute. Whenever I played we had to do concussion tests. How far they've come on in the last 10, 15 years is amazing," Bowe said.
"In 2009, some of those hits that went in on that Tour would now be straight red cards when they were hardly even penalties back then.
"The game is really trying to clamp down on those hits, we saw how many red cards there was at the Six Nations.
"A test like this would take away the ambiguity of it. The players will know if they are showing signs from the saliva that they have a concussion, that they will have to sit out and take mandatory time out to rest. That can only be a good thing for the game going forward, not just for rugby, for so many sports."
Bowe added: "Referees are doing their best. I think they're trying to clamp down on it, but you see in Test match rugby there are so many incidents. I think the referee picked up on most of them, they're doing their best.
"With this, if someone takes a knock to the head, it looks like they're concussed but pass the protocols and are back playing again the following week. For parents watching that, they're thinking of their children and gives them that bit of fear. This saliva test will hopefully get rid of those ways around other tests."
