Preliminary Examination of Guardian Cap Head Impact Kinematics Using Instrumented Mouthguards.

Context: Guardian Caps (GCs) are currently the most popular external helmet add-on designed to reduce the magnitude of head impacts experienced by American football players. Guardian Caps have been endorsed by influential professional organizations; however, few studies evaluating their efficiency are publicly available.

Objective: To present preliminary on-field head kinematics data for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I American football players using instrumented mouthguards through closely matched preseason workouts with and without GCs.

Preliminary Examination of Guardian Cap Head Impact Data Using Instrumented Mouthguards.

Purpose The objective of this study is to present preliminary on-field head kinematics data for NCAA Division I American football players through closely matched pre-season workouts both with and without Guardian Caps (GCs). Methods 42 NCAA Division I American football players wore instrumented mouthguards (iMMs) for 6 closely matched workouts, 3 in traditional helmets (PRE) and 3 with GCs (POST) affixed to the exterior of their helmets. This includes 7 players who had consistent data through all workouts.