A Look "Inside" the Sport of Wrestling: Examination of Head Acceleration Events and Mechanisms in Female High-School Wrestlers Using Instrumented Mouthguards.

Purpose: To characterize true-positive head accelerations events (HAEs) captured with instrumented mouthguards (iMGs) in high-school female wrestlers using video-verification during matches and to measure players' perceptions of iMG use.

Methods: Thirty female high-school wrestlers (ages 16.4 ± 0.8 years) from 6 Canadian high schools wore Prevent boil-and-bite iMGs® during a total of 248 video-recorded player-matches. HAEs were identified during matches using Dartfish video analysis and match characteristics (periods of play, offensiveness, move type) were coded per HAE. The rate of HAEs was estimated and a multilevel multivariable analysis fitting all factors was employed to characterize the magnitude of velocities and accelerations.

Results: 1313/1414 acceleration events accumulated during match events and above an 8 g threshold were labeled as true-positive (TP) HAEs (93%). Most HAEs occurred in matches with two periods and when the iMG player was engaged in neutral play (neither offensive or defensive). Most HAEs occurred during hand fighting (57.3% of all TP HAEs), followed by ground moves (13.8% of all TP HAEs), and takedowns (10.1% of all TP HAEs). Multivariable models showed offensive moves report higher magnitude peak velocities than during neutral moves. Ground moves, takedowns, and other moves showed higher peak velocities than during hand fighting. Headbutting and takedowns displayed higher peak accelerations than during hand fighting. Players' overall perception of iMG use was positive (comfort rating 0-10 scale: median 7.5; IQR 1.0).

Conclusion: HAEs occur most during the first period of matches, tournaments, and hand fighting followed by high-intensity moves, such as ground moves and takedowns.