TY - JOUR
T1 - Does reducing the height of the tackle through law change in elite men's rugby union (The Championship, England) reduce the incidence of concussion? A controlled study in 126 games
AU - Stokes, Keith A.
AU - Locke, Duncan
AU - Roberts, Simon
AU - Henderson, Lewis
AU - Tucker, Ross
AU - Ryan, Dean
AU - Kemp, Simon
PY - 2021/2/2
Y1 - 2021/2/2
N2 - Objectives: Most concussions in rugby union occur during tackles. We investigated whether legislating to lower maximum tackle height would change tackle behaviour, and reduce concussion incidence rate. Methods: In a single group intervention, 12 elite men's teams played in two competitions during the 2019/2020 season. The Championship (control, 90 games) retained standard Laws of Rugby for the tackle; the Championship Cup (intervention, 36 games) used revised laws - the maximum tackle height was lowered from the line of the shoulders on the ball carrier to the line of the armpits. Videos of tackles were analysed for ball carrier and tackler behaviour. Injury data were collected using standardised methods. Results: In the intervention setting, there was a significantly lower proportion of tackles; (1) in which ball carriers (rate ratio (RR) 0.83, 95% CI 0.79 to 0.86) and tacklers (RR 0.80, 95% CI 0.76 to 0.84) were upright, (2) in which the tackler's initial contact was to the ball carrier's head or neck (RR 0.70, 95% CI 0.58 to 0.84) and (3) in which initial contact was above the line of the ball carrier's armpit (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.80 to 0.88). Concussion incidence rate did not differ between conditions (RR 1.31, 95% CI 0.85 to 2.01). Unexpectedly, compared with the control setting, tacklers in the intervention setting were themselves concussed at a higher rate as measured by; (1) incidence (RR 1.90, 95% CI 1.05 to 3.45) and (2) concussions per 1000 tackles (2.09, 95% CI 1.15 to 3.80) than in the control setting. Conclusions: Legislating to lower the height of the tackle meant that tacklers made contact with the ball carrier's head and neck 30% less often. This did not influence concussion incidence rates. Tacklers in the intervention setting - who were aiming to tackle lower - suffered more concussions than did tacklers in the control setting.
AB - Objectives: Most concussions in rugby union occur during tackles. We investigated whether legislating to lower maximum tackle height would change tackle behaviour, and reduce concussion incidence rate. Methods: In a single group intervention, 12 elite men's teams played in two competitions during the 2019/2020 season. The Championship (control, 90 games) retained standard Laws of Rugby for the tackle; the Championship Cup (intervention, 36 games) used revised laws - the maximum tackle height was lowered from the line of the shoulders on the ball carrier to the line of the armpits. Videos of tackles were analysed for ball carrier and tackler behaviour. Injury data were collected using standardised methods. Results: In the intervention setting, there was a significantly lower proportion of tackles; (1) in which ball carriers (rate ratio (RR) 0.83, 95% CI 0.79 to 0.86) and tacklers (RR 0.80, 95% CI 0.76 to 0.84) were upright, (2) in which the tackler's initial contact was to the ball carrier's head or neck (RR 0.70, 95% CI 0.58 to 0.84) and (3) in which initial contact was above the line of the ball carrier's armpit (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.80 to 0.88). Concussion incidence rate did not differ between conditions (RR 1.31, 95% CI 0.85 to 2.01). Unexpectedly, compared with the control setting, tacklers in the intervention setting were themselves concussed at a higher rate as measured by; (1) incidence (RR 1.90, 95% CI 1.05 to 3.45) and (2) concussions per 1000 tackles (2.09, 95% CI 1.15 to 3.80) than in the control setting. Conclusions: Legislating to lower the height of the tackle meant that tacklers made contact with the ball carrier's head and neck 30% less often. This did not influence concussion incidence rates. Tacklers in the intervention setting - who were aiming to tackle lower - suffered more concussions than did tacklers in the control setting.
KW - concussion
KW - injury
KW - injury prevention
KW - rugby
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85076924998&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1136/bjsports-2019-101557
DO - 10.1136/bjsports-2019-101557
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85076924998
SN - 0306-3674
VL - 55
SP - 220
EP - 225
JO - British Journal of Sports Medicine
JF - British Journal of Sports Medicine
ER -