No Association Between Age of First Concussion and Gait Performance in Collegiate Student-athletes

There is concern that adolescent exposure to concussion may be detrimental to neurodevelopment and manifest in long-term cognitive and physical impairments, but the existing literature is mixed. Age of first concussion (AFC) has been correlated with measures of psychological distress and reaction time, but to date no study has explored postural control- a biomarker of neurological health. Impaired postural control is common both acutely and chronically following concussion; however, the relationship between AFC and postural control remains unknown. PURPOSE: To examine the association between AFC and single- and dual-task gait performance in collegiate student-athletes. METHODS: Thirty-nine collegiate student-athletes (age: 19.5 ± 1.4 years, height: 180.6 ± 10.1 cm, mass: 87.6 ± 18.7 kg, 13% female) from various sports performed a single- and (working memory) dual-task gait assessment prior to the start of their initial collegiate athletic season. Gait measures were recorded using inertial measurement units. Dependent variables included single- and dual-task gait speed and stride length, and the relationship between the dependent variables and AFC was analyzed using a linear regression adjusting for concussion history and height. RESULTS: The mean AFC was 16.2 ± 3.2 years (range: 7-22 years old). There were no significant associations between age of first concussion and single-task gait speed (1.15 ± 0.15 m/s, ß = -0.01, p = 0.34, 95% CI: -0.02, 0.01), dual-task gait speed (0.98 ± 0.24 m/s), ß = -0.01, p = 0.31, 95% CI: -0.03, 0.01), single-task stride length (1.25 ± 0.13 m, ß = -0.01, p = 0.17, 95% CI: -0.02, 0.003), or dual-task stride length (1.12 ± 0.25 m, ß = -0.02, p = 0.14, 95% CI: -0.04, 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Age of first concussion was not associated with single- or dual-task gait performance in collegiate student-athletes. These findings align with recent literature that reported no meaningful relationship between age of first concussion and other cognitive and physical outcomes in a similar population, suggesting earlier life concussions do not result in lingering impairments. However, the long-term consequences of concussion at an earlier age remain unknown.