University of British Columbia researchers are studying the effects of head impacts on football players using the xPatch, a small sensor worn behind the ear.
They are investigating the link between an athlete’s brain functions and the number of hits they sustain during a season. They are also using the study to test the reliability of the information the sensors collect.
The research team’s test subjects are members of the UBC Thunderbirds football team, who wore the technology in their win against the Calgary Dinos at the 2015 Hardy Cup finals. They will be wearing the sensors at the national semi-finals on Saturday, November 21 in Nova Scotia.
The researchers will analyze all of the data collected after the Thunderbirds season is over with the full study expected to be completed in spring 2016.
The research is a joint collaboration between UBC’s School of Kinesiology and MEA Forensic Engineers & Scientists in Richmond, B.C. The Canadian Chiropractic Research Foundation funds the work.
Story sources
Prof. Jean-Sébastien Blouin
Principal Investigator, Associate Professor in UBC’s School of Kinesiology
Tel: 604-827-3372
Email: jsblouin@mail.ubc.ca
Harrison Brown (in Nova Scotia)
PhD candidate, School of Kinesiology
Tel: 604.562.3349
Email: brownhj@interchange.ubc.ca
Alexander Rebchuk (in Nova Scotia)
MSc student, School of Kinesiology
Tel: 604.754.7434
Email: a.rebchuk@gmail.com
Brandon Deschamps (in Nova Scotia)
UBC Thunderbirds running back
Tel: 604.354.2023
Please Note: Brandon Deschamps is available only by phone today from 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Pacific time (2:30 – 4:30 Atlantic).
Gunter Siegmund
Principal Investigator, Director of Research, MEA Forensic Engineers & Scientists
Tel: 604.277.3659
Email: gunter.siegmund@meaforensic.com