Scientists are developing a pitch-side breathalyser that can show if a footballer or rugby player is suffering from concussion.
So far they have only tested gases in the laboratory, but a trial involving 40 students could pave the way to making such a device available to professional and amateur clubs.
The aim is to detect chemicals in the breath shown to be associated with concussion after a blow, or series of blows, to the head.
The potentially serious condition is often missed and there is no practical objective way of testing for it.
Concern is mounting over the health risk to athletes who suffer head knocks, especially children. Some experts have called for a ban on ‘headers’ in school football.
Evidence suggests that repeated blows to the head especially can cause serious damage, resulting in dementia-like symptoms seen in ‘punch drunk’ boxers.
A controversial psychological concussion test that allows a player to return to the game within a few minutes of being given the ‘all clear’ has been strongly criticised by both players and experts.
University colleague Michael Grey pointed out that obvious symptoms of concussion often only show up after a significant delay.
The breathalyser would provide a simple, cheap and robust method of testing for concussion without having to resort to costly and difficult procedures such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans.
Laboratory experiments have shown that tiny traces of certain chemicals associated with concussion can be detected in the blood, urine and, potentially, even breath.
The ‘panel’ of chemicals included the central nervous system metabolite N-acetylaspartate (NAA), and the proteins S100B and GFAP.
In the student trial at the University of Birmingham, the researchers will look for correlations between levels of the molecules in blood and urine and rates of concussion among young athletes.
Belli said the same chemicals can be detected in gases, raising the possibility of a breath test.
“It would be similar to a breath-alyser,” he said.
“You would have a detector attuned to measure these chemicals. It would take about five or 10 minutes.
“It wouldn’t be quicker than the current test, but it would be more reliable.”
The scientists are also looking at using a technique called Transcranial Magnetic Stim-ulation (TMS) to spot signs of concussion.
Concern is mounting over the health risk to athletes who suffer head knocks, especially children
TMS uses a magnetic field to stimulate electrical activity in the brain which can be translated to muscle movements. Research suggests that in concussed patients this connection is impaired.
The scientists were accompanied by Dawn Astle, daughter of former West Bromwich Albion player Jeff Astle who was famous for his heading ability. Astle died from brain trauma at the age of 59 after being diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s.
A post-mortem found that large areas of his brain had been irreversibly destroyed.