Andrews Hockey Growth partners with UPEI on concussion research
The University of Prince Edward Island announced a partnership today with Andrews Hockey Growth Programs Inc. The Memorandum of Understanding gives youth who are attending the internationally-known, Charlottetown-based hockey school the opportunity to participate in a groundbreaking research study that investigates the several areas of concussion assessment and return to play after a concussion injury.
Once accepted as a common and even expected event within sport, concussion has emerged as a prominent sports-related injury at all levels of physical activity, especially where the risk of head trauma is prevalent. Concussion has gained attention especially in hockey because it is linked not only to acute and current trauma, but because the concussion condition has also been linked to post-injury depression and long-term dementia.
Currently, there is no single comprehensive strategy for establishing baseline estimates against which recovery from concussion injuries will be compared; and likewise, there is no comprehensive single strategy for establishing return to play following a concussion injury.
The inaugural Margaret and Wallace McCain Chair in Human Development and Health at UPEI, Dr. William Montelpare, who leads the research team, said, 'Andrews Hockey Growth's philosophy is entrenched in evidence-based research and recognizes the value of our work and how it can benefit athletes. We are very excited that they are assisting us by inviting their hockey players to participate in our study.'
Andrews Hockey Growth will invite its athletes aged 9 and over to participate in the research. Parents and/or guardians must register online at upei.ca/concussion, sign a letter of consent, and in return will receive a report of baseline measurements from four concussion screening tests evaluating memory, attention, reaction time, and balance.
'Our development programs stress the importance of healthy living for successful growth as a hockey player. Understanding more about concussion injury is part of this,' said Andrews Hockey Growth President and founder Allan Andrews. 'We are excited to partner with UPEI and to offer our athlete participants the chance to contribute to this research that will lead to better, science-based decision making about an athlete's return-to-play following a concussion.'
