IQVIA, Research Triangle Park, Durham, North Carolina.
Department of Neurological Surgery, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee.
Neurosurgery. 2020 Aug 1;87(2):312-319. doi: 10.1093/neuros/nyz481.
The real-time detection of concussive injury in professional sports can be challenging for the healthcare provider on the sideline. It can be difficult to monitor all on-field players during active game play and diagnose complex injuries such as concussion during a fast-paced athletic event.
To enhance the in-game identification of potentially concussed professional athletes, the National Football League (NFL) initiated an Unaffiliated Neurotrauma Consultants (UNC) program in 2013, which, in tandem with other in-arena spotters and live video review systems, is designed to improve the safety of the players through enhanced concussion detection efforts.
This paper reports on the evolution of the UNC program, describes its participants and training requirements, details the role of UNC involvement, and delineates the systematic revisions and enhancements completed each year in the program.
UNC reporting compliance has increased from 56% in 2014 to 100% in 2017. During the 2016 and 2017 seasons, (1) UNCs submitted an average of 1.9 evaluations per game, and (2) the UNC concussion assessments yielded sensitivity (93.4%-97.4%) and specificity (81.0%-88.3%) values.
The UNC program has enhanced the detection of concussion in NFL players. Directions for research and future program improvements are addressed.
实时检测职业体育中的脑震荡对场边的医疗服务提供者来说具有挑战性。在激烈的体育赛事中，很难对场上所有运动员进行监测，也很难对脑震荡等复杂损伤进行诊断。
为了提高职业运动员脑震荡的场内识别能力，美国国家橄榄球联盟（NFL）于 2013 年启动了非附属神经创伤顾问（UNC）计划，该计划与其他场内观察员和实时视频审查系统一起，旨在通过加强对脑震荡的检测来提高运动员的安全性。
本文报告了 UNC 计划的演变，描述了其参与者和培训要求，详细说明了 UNC 的参与角色，并阐述了该计划每年完成的系统修订和增强。
UNC 报告的合规性从 2014 年的 56%增加到了 2017 年的 100%。在 2016 赛季和 2017 赛季中，（1）UNC 平均每场提交 1.9 次评估，（2）UNC 的脑震荡评估得出的敏感性（93.4%-97.4%）和特异性（81.0%-88.3%）值。
UNC 计划提高了 NFL 球员脑震荡的检测能力。探讨了研究方向和未来计划的改进。
