Panicked on the sidelines after a head impact, a coach still has questions to ask and his intuition (apart from the “concussion protocol” put in place at the professional level for certain sports). And if a simple concussion saliva test allowed, in a few minutes, to obtain a clear signal without going to the hospital?
Concussions remain largely underdiagnosed: approximately 3 million cases per year are reported in the United States, nearly two-thirds of which occur among young people, and up to 50% of sports-related concussions are neither reported nor detected. In both amateur and professional sports, many athletes minimize their symptoms to stay in the game.
A saliva test to objectify the concussion at the edge of the field
Co-founder of HeadFirst and former junior hockey player, Andrew Cordssen-David is developing a small portable device that analyzes a drop of saliva taken just after the shock. “Even today, concussion screening often relies on guesswork due to the subjectivity of current assessments. OUR initiative consists of integrating the first test objective to the range of tools used by sports and health professionals; a tool that will allow them to make more informed decisions“, explains Andrew Cordssen-David, quoted by the University of Waterloo.
HeadFirst conducts its research with Waterloo Athletics, which provides saliva samples from several university teams. “Saliva contains key biomarkers that have shown strong potential to indicate brain injury. Once clinical trials are completed, these devices can be used to complement other assessments to provide an objective result that will help athletic therapists make informed decisions at the bedside.“, emphasizes Dr. Shazia Tanvir, co-founder of HeadFirst and professor at the University of Waterloo.
From the ice rink to road accidents, saliva as an alarm
Since the project was made public, Olympic committees, professional leagues and major international teams have approached the company. “This shows how big the problem is and how strong the demand is in the market. We are building something that can really make an impact“, adds Andrew Cordssen-David. Such a test could also help emergency services sort victims more quickly after a road accident or assess a soldier after an explosion.
HeadFirst is not alone in this field: in the United States, the Clarifi mTBI saliva test, based on microRNAs, was presented as the first patented device to diagnose concussions. In France, the Diag in Sport consortium led by Vogo and the CNRS Sys2Diag laboratory aims, with saliva tests in 10 to 12 minutes, to increase the rate of concussions detected in sport from less than 30% to around 85%.
Towards a new care routine
These saliva tests would not replace the clinical examination, but would complement tools like the SCAT5 (a standardized concussion assessment tool, designed for use by doctors and health professionals) by providing a rapid biological marker and, potentially, clues about the duration of symptoms and return to play.