Abstract:
Introduction
Repetitive head impacts (RHI) in sports
may represent a risk factor for long-term
cognitive and neurological sequelae. Recent studies have identified an association between playing football at the top level and an elevated risk of cognitive impairment and neurodegenerative disease. However, these were conducted on men, and there is a knowledge gap
regarding these risks in female athletes. This study aims to investigate the effect of head impacts on brain health in female former top-level football players.
Methods and analysis This is a prospective cohort study, enroling female former football players and top-level athletes from sports without an inherent risk of RHI. All participants are born in 1980 or earlier. We plan to perform follow-up assessments at least three times over 20 years. The protocol includes neurocognitive assessments, self-reported
neurocognitive outcomes, neurological
examination, advanced brain MRI, and fluid biomarkers.
Ethics and dissemination
The study has been approved by the South-East Regional Ethics Committee
for Medical Research in Norway (2023/178330) and the Norwegian Agency for Shared Services in Education and
Research (SIKT). A Data Protection Impact Assessment was developed by the research group and approved by SIKT and the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences.
We will disseminate the results through peer-reviewed publications, academic conference presentations and webinars. We will communicate with the public and
key stakeholders in football worldwide to inform and promote the development and implementation of potential preventive measures based on our study findings.