November 28, 2023
Mouthguard research making rugby safer
A new study is shedding light on the long-term effects of head impacts and other injuries from contact sports.
The University of Otago study funded by World Rugby looked at two years of Otago community rugby from under-13s to premier grades.
About 700 athletes were equipped with smart mouthguards, allowing almost 40,000 on-field events to be analysed.
Associate professor Melanie Bussey says head acceleration on the younger players was slower than for older players, with under-19 grade male players having the largest magnitude head collisions.
“Most of the larger magnitude events happen in the contact phases of the game so tackles, rucks, and then within tackles probably equally divided between ball carrier and tackler,” she says.
Dr Bussey says rugby is part of New Zealand’s culture, and making sure it can be played more safely is part of its survival.