Cognitive Functioning in Varsity Athletes Following Musculoskeletal Injury

• Main Author: Snow, Nicholas
• Other Authors: Mainwaring, Lynda
• Language: en_ca
• Published: 2010
• Subjects: musculoskeletal injury; cognition; practice effects; automated neuropsychological assessment metrics; working memory; spatial processing; concussion; cognitive functioning; 0633
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/25805

Background: Research suggests that musculoskeletal injury (MSI) influences cognitive functioning. Cognitive functioning following MSI in athletes is not evaluated currently. Purpose and Method: To examine cognitive deficit in athletes following musculoskeletal injuries, the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metric (ANAM) was administered to 22 varsity athletes prior to competition and following MSI. A healthy comparison group of 22 athletes was also tested at time intervals matched with the injured group. Results: A 2 (Group) X 2 (Time) repeated measures ANOVA revealed significant main effects for time on ANAM subtests of Delayed Code Substitution and Simple Reaction Time. Post-hoc Paired t-Tests revealed significant improvements in both groups for Simple Reaction Time, and a significant improvement for the comparison group on Match-to-Sample. Implications: Athletes with musculoskeletal injuries did not show cognitive deficit post-injury; however, the apparent absence of practice effects on a test of spatial processing and working memory requires further examination.