Relationships between aggression, sensation seeking, brain stiffness, and head impact exposure: Implications for head impact prevention in ice hockey
Date
2022-04-23
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Brain and Behavior
Abstract
Objectives:
The objectives of this study were to (1) examine the relationship between the number of head impacts sustained in a season of men's collegiate club ice hockey and behavioral traits of aggression and sensation seeking, and (2) explore the neural correlates of these behaviors using neuroimaging.
Design:
Retrospective cohort study.
Methods:
Participants (n = 18) completed baseline surveys to quantify self-reported aggression and sensation-seeking tendencies. Aggression related to playing style was quantified through penalty minutes accrued during a season. Participants wore head impact sensors throughout a season to quantify the number of head impacts sustained. Participants (n = 15) also completed baseline anatomical and magnetic elastography neuroimaging scans to measure brain volumetric and viscoelastic properties. Pearson correlation analyses were performed to examine relationships between (1) impacts, aggression, and sensation seeking, and (2) impacts, aggression, and sensation seeking and brain volume, stiffness, and damping ratio, as an exploratory analysis.
Results:
Number of head impacts sustained was significantly related to the number of penalty minutes accrued, normalized to number of games played (r = .62, p < .01). Our secondary, exploratory analysis revealed that number of impacts, sensation seeking, and aggression were related to stiffness or damping ratio of the thalamus, amygdala, hippocampus, and frontal cortex, but not volume.
Conclusions:
A more aggressive playing style was related to an increased number of head impacts sustained, which may provide evidence for future studies of head impact prevention. Further, magnetic resonance elastography may aid to monitor behavior or head impact exposure. Researchers should continue to examine this relationship and consider targeting behavioral modification programs of aggression to decrease head impact exposure in ice hockey.
Description
This article was originally published in Brain and Behavior. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.2627
Keywords
athletic training, injury management, neuroscience, sports medicine, sports psychology
Citation
DiFabio, M. S., Smith, D. R., Breedlove, K. M., Buckley, T. A., & Johnson, C. L. (2022). Relationships between aggression, sensation seeking, brain stiffness, and head impact exposure: Implications for head impact prevention in ice hockey. Brain and Behavior, 00, e2627. https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.2627