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- Posted Thursday September 12, 2013
Arizona State University Football Program Joins Riddell and TGen as First-Ever Collegiate Partner in Genetic Study of Concussion Detection, Treatment
Sun Devils' Real-Time Head Impact Data and Genetic Information Could Provide Keys to Advancement in Player Protection and Performance
TEMPE, Ariz. and ROSEMONT, Ill. - September 12, 2013
- Riddell, the leader in football helmet technology and
innovation, today announced that the Pac-12's Arizona State
University and its Sun Devil football program will participate as
the first university research partner in a new study designed to
advance athlete concussion detection and treatment. This
potentially groundbreaking joint research project is the first of
its kind to combine molecular information with the monitoring of
head impacts.
Working with the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and
its research partners, the Sun Devil football team will participate
in the study to identify whether the effects of sub-concussive hits
are identifiable through blood-based molecular information. The
researchers will monitor the players' changing molecular
information throughout a season of typical head impact exposure
associated with football practice and games.
The Riddell Sideline Response System (SRS) has been deployed for
use at Arizona State University for the 2013 college football
season to obtain real-time head impact data from Sun Devil football
players. Information gathered from the system will be
combined with molecular information from players that experience
concussion, with the objective of helping physicians diagnose
concussion and better identify when a player might be expected to
recover and return to the field. TGen and Riddell announced their
research collaboration in May.
Today's football is played with ever-increasing levels of speed,
strength and overall performance, with an unrelenting demand for
cutting-edge protection to match. Elite players turn to
Riddell for its advanced equipment that allows for the highest
level of performance, while providing that same level of protection
when it matters most - on game day.
"Our goal is to be leaders in the community, on and off the field,
and partnering with industry pioneers like Riddell and TGen enables
us to be proactive in helping to advance the game and enrich the
lives of our student-athletes," said Steve Patterson, Vice
President for Sun Devil Athletics. "Involvement in this study is
consistent with our long-term goals, and also increases awareness
and understanding of this important topic, as well as furthers the
Pac-12's Student-Athlete Health and Well-Being Initiative."
The Sun Devils' medical team, consisting of athletic trainers and
physicians, will not see the data or interpret any results until
the end of the season, and the student-athletes wearing the Riddell
SRS sensors in their helmets volunteered to partake in the
study.
At the heart of the study is merging a player's molecular
information with real-time head impact information captured by
Riddell's exclusive SRS technology. Riddell, in partnership with
Simbex, LLC, was the first to introduce a helmet-based player
monitoring and response system to the sport of football. The data
output provides researchers, athletic staff and players with a wide
range of valuable information - transmitted directly to the
sidelines via wireless communication - on the frequency and
severity of head impacts a player receives during games and
practices. Riddell SRS has captured over 1.8 million impacts from
youth to elite football competition since instituted in 2003 by
several well-respected research institutions, leading to important
rule changes and informing new helmet designs.
With the high expectations for the Sun Devil football team this
year, Arizona State's implementation of Riddell SRS reinforces the
school's commitment to their student athletes' well-being and helps
to ensure they're performing at the optimal level.
"Together with Arizona State University, TGen and our other
important research partners, we at Riddell hope to answer a number
of key questions that will lead to improved player protection,
inform our continued development of new helmet innovations and
further refine player monitoring technology," said Dan Arment,
President of Riddell.
Among those questions is whether the effects of sub-concussive
hits are identifiable through blood-based molecular information
that could unlock new opportunities for innovation and advancement
of the game. Researchers at TGen, along with their colleagues, hope
to find the answers in the data.
During this phase of the study, TGen faculty and staff have been
on the sidelines working closely with their colleagues at Barrow
Neurological Institute, A.T. Still University and Desert Testing
collecting samples and data.
A baseline sample was collected from all participating players
prior to their pre-season workouts. Since then, the researchers
have followed the team through their daily workouts and will
continue throughout the season, securing samples the day after each
practice or game. Through the collection of samples over various
points in time and the data generated by Riddell SRS, the goal is
to identify the genomic changes in athletes exposed to routine head
impacts during practice and games, athletes with diagnosed
concussions that recover on both a routine time scale, and athletes
with persistent symptoms following concussion that require
additional treatment.
"There is no time to waste in bridging the information gathered
through Riddell SRS and the genomic information we will gather to
hopefully glean a clearer picture of how concussions impact human
neurological function in terms of injury, recovery and future risk
for long term complications. We are indeed excited to join the ASU
football program and Riddell in this pioneering study," said Dr.
Jeffrey Trent, TGen President and Research Director.
Following the season long campaign, the researchers will gather
post-season baseline data and begin the analysis process with their
colleagues at Barrow Neurological Institute and A.T. Still
University. During this process, TGen will work closely with
Barrow, whose B.R.A.I.N.S. (Barrow Resource for Acquired Injury to
the Nervous System) program treats patients who have sustained a
traumatic brain or spinal cord injury. The Barrow data will provide
the researchers with additional concussion data and allow for
comparison between data sets.
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About Riddell
Founded in 1929, Riddell is a premier designer and developer of
protective sports equipment and a recognized leader in helmet
technology and innovation. One of Easton-Bell Sports Inc.'s most
well-known brands and the Official Helmet of the NFL®, Riddell is
the leading manufacturer of football helmets, shoulder pads and
reconditioning services (cleaning, repairing, repainting and
recertifying existing equipment). For more information, visit our
website at www.riddell.com, like the Riddell Facebook page, or follow Riddell on
Twitter @RiddellSports.
About Arizona State University
Arizona State University is one of the top 100 research
universities in the world and fifth in the United States for
producing career-ready graduates with the skills to succeed in the
workforce. It is the largest public research university in the
nation under a single administration, with total student enrollment
of more than 76,000 in metropolitan Phoenix, the nation's
fifth-largest city. ASU is creating a new model for American higher
education, an unprecedented combination of academic excellence,
entrepreneurial energy and broad access. This New American
University is a single, unified institution comprising four
differentiated campuses positively impacting the economic, social,
cultural and environmental health of the communities it
serves. Its research is inspired by real world application,
blurring the boundaries that traditionally separate academic
disciplines. ASU champions intellectual and cultural
diversity, and welcomes students from all fifty states and more
than one hundred nations across the globe.
About TGen
Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) is a Phoenix,
Arizona-based non-profit organization dedicated to conducting
groundbreaking research with life changing results. TGen is focused
on helping patients with neurological disorders, cancer, and
diabetes, through cutting edge translational research (the process
of rapidly moving research towards patient benefit). TGen
physicians and scientists work to unravel the genetic components of
both common and rare complex diseases in adults and children.
Working with collaborators in the scientific and medical
communities literally world-wide, TGen makes a substantial
contribution to help our patients through efficiency and
effectiveness of the translational process. For more information,
visit:www.tgen.org.
About Barrow Neurological Institute
Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical
Center is an internationally renowned medical center that offers
care for people from throughout the world with brain and spine
diseases, disorders and injuries. Barrow performs more
neurosurgeries annually than any hospital in the United States.
U.S. News & World Report routinely lists St. Joseph's among the
best hospitals in the nation for neurological and neurosurgical
care.
About AT Still University
Established in 1892 by A.T. Still, MD, DO, the founder of
osteopathy, A.T. Still University began as the nation's first
college of osteopathic medicine and has evolved into a leading
university of health sciences comprised of one college and four
schools on two campuses and online. Today we offer master's degrees
across allied health disciplines; doctorates in health education,
physical therapy, health sciences, and audiology; the doctor of
dental medicine; and the doctor of osteopathic medicine.
Media Contacts:
Erin Griffin, Riddell
224.585.5231 | [email protected]
Thomas Lenneberg, Arizona State University
480.965.6594 | [email protected]
Steve Yozwiak, TGen
602.343.8704 | [email protected]
Carmelle Malkovich, Barrow
602.406.3319 | [email protected]
Karen Scott, ATSU
480.219.6015 | [email protected]