title: Serum Tau Fragments Predict Return to Play in Concussed Professional Ice Hockey Players.
abstract: The diagnosis of sports-related concussion is mainly based on subjective clinical symptoms and neuropsychological tests. Therefore, reliable brain injury biomarkers to assess when it is safe to return to play are highly desirable. The overall objective of this study was to evaluate the utility of two newly described tau fragments for diagnosis and prognosis of sports-related concussions. This multi-center prospective cohort study involved all 12 teams of the top professional ice hockey league in Sweden. A total of 288 players consented to participate in the study. Thirty-five players sustained concussions, of whom 28 underwent repeated blood samplings at 1, 12, 36, and 144 h after the trauma, or when the player returned to play (7 to >90 days). There was no significant increase in the levels of Tau-A in post-concussion samples compared with preseason values. However, serum levels of Tau-C were significantly higher in post-concussion samples compared with preseason. Further, levels of Tau-A correlated with the duration of post-concussive symptoms. Tau-A in serum, which is newly discovered biomarker, could be used to predict when it is safe to return to play after a sports-related concussion.
authors.affiliation: 1 Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology , the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden .
authors.forename: Pashtun
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Shahim
authors.affiliation: 2 Biomarkers & Research , Nordic Bioscience, Herlev, Denmark .
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Linemann
authors.affiliation: 2 Biomarkers & Research , Nordic Bioscience, Herlev, Denmark .
authors.forename: Dilek
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Inekci
authors.affiliation: 2 Biomarkers & Research , Nordic Bioscience, Herlev, Denmark .
authors.forename: Morten Asser
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Karsdal
authors.affiliation: 1 Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology , the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden .
authors.forename: Kaj
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Blennow
authors.affiliation: 3 Division of Medical Sciences, Department of Health Sciences, Luleå University of Technology , Luleå, Sweden .
authors.forename: Yelverton
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tegner
authors.affiliation: 1 Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology , the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden .|4 UCL Institute of Neurology , Queen Square, London, United Kingdom .
authors.forename: Henrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zetterberg
authors.affiliation: 2 Biomarkers & Research , Nordic Bioscience, Herlev, Denmark .
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Henriksen
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001924:Brain Concussion / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D006688:Hockey / Q000293:injuries* / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D000068958:Return to Sport / Q000639:trends*; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D016875:tau Proteins / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C054369:MAPT protein, human; D016875:tau Proteins
keywords: ice hockey; serum biomarkers; sports-related concussion; tau fragments