Head Impact Exposure in Youth Soccer and Variation by Age and Sex

Objective: To examine variation in head impact exposure (HIE) by age and sex in youth soccer. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting and Participants: Youth soccer athletes (11-14 years old) in local clubs. Exposures: Age and sex. Outcome Measures: Head impact exposure measured using adhesive-mounted accelerometers during 1 month of soccer. Results: Forty-six youth athletes (54% female) participated. No athlete reported a concussion during the study. More males than females had at least 1 head impact ≥15 g (P = 0.02). Of those who sustained a head impact above the 15-g threshold (57%), females sustained HIE of greater magnitude than males (median 47.4 g vs 33.3 g, P = 0.04). Eighty-five percent of athletes on U14 teams had at least 1 head impact ≥15 g compared with 15% of athletes on U12 teams (P

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