QMJHL To Tackle Concussions Head-First With Australian Detection App

The QMJHL has been the premiere league for innovation on player safety over the past couple seasons by enacting harsher penalties for fights.

Now they have taken the next big leap forward in improving their concussion protocol partnering with Australian company BrainEye to aid in catching concussions when they happen.

BrainEye is an app that seeks to take the subjectivity out of concussion testing. The company boasts the ability to test up to 50 per cent of the brain's functionality in cognitive decline and damage testing.

These simple tests are able to be completed on a smartphone, and can provide insightful data to be shared with team doctors and medical professionals to aid them in assessing the best path forward.

Concussion research is important, especially in a contact sport like hockey, as 50 per cent of concussions go undiagnosed at first according to a 2016 study from researchers at the University of Florida. 

They've already worked together with over 110,000 athletes across 16 countries.

“Aberrant eye movements are a well-known feature of concussion, just think of how many times you see an injured player asked to follow a finger," says BrainEye Chief Scientific Officer Joanne Fielding. "It’s an important component of the sideline examination but is entirely subjective. By sensitively measuring change in the way a player tracks a moving target with their eyes, the BrainEye app provides an objective measure of brain function, that can not only assist a medical professional in making a diagnosis of concussion but can track any change in brain function over time.”

The QMJHL also noted it will continue to fight for the health and safety of its players, as it continues to lobby equipment manufactures to create safer helmets.