Ballmann Christopher G, Rogers Rebecca R
Department of Human Studies, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
Department of Physical Therapy, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.
J Funct Morphol Kinesiol. 2024 Sep 18;9(3):169. doi: 10.3390/jfmk9030169.
Previous evidence has shown that American football headgear (e.g., facemasks, visors/eye shields) differentially impairs reaction time (RT) to visual stimuli, most notably in peripheral fields of view. However, this has only been established with stationary RT testing, which may not translate to gameplay situations that require gross motor skills. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to build upon previous findings to elucidate the effects of various American football headgear on gross motor visuomotor drill performance. Division 1 NCAA football players (n = 16) with normal/corrected-to-normal vision participated and completed two experiments (EXP), each with differing conditions: EXP1- Varying facemask reinforcement and EXP2- Varying visor/eye shield light transmittance. In EXP1, participants completed an agility test for the following conditions: baseline/no helmet (BL), helmet + light (HL), helmet + medium (HM), and helmet + heavy (HH) face mask reinforcement. In EXP2, participants completed an agility test for the following conditions: baseline/no helmet (BL), helmet + clear visor (HCV), helmet + smoke-tinted visor (HSV), and helmet + mirrored visor (HMV). For each condition in EXP1 and EXP2, participants completed a reactive agility task using a FITLIGHT trainer system where five poles were equipped with a total of ten LED sensors and were placed in a semi-circle 1 m around a center point. Participants were asked to step and reach with their hands to hit each ten lights individually as fast as possible upon illumination. Each reactive agility test was repeated for a total of three attempts. Average reaction time was analyzed and compared between conditions and according to visual fields of interest (e.g., central vs. peripheral). Results from EXP1 showed that compared to BL, reactive agility was worsened by HL ( = 0.030), HM ( = 0.034), and HH ( = 0.003) conditions. No differences between facemask conditions existed for overall performance ( > 0.05). For EXP2, HCV ( < 0.001), HSV ( < 0.001), and HMV ( < 0.001) conditions resulted in worsened reactive agility performance compared to BL. No differences between visor conditions existed for overall performance ( > 0.05). Overall, these findings suggest that American football headgear impairs reactive agility, which could result in worsened game performance and safety. Future studies investigating training strategies to overcome impairments are warranted.
先前的证据表明，美式橄榄球头盔（如面罩、遮阳板/眼罩）对视觉刺激的反应时间（RT）有不同程度的损害，在周边视野中尤为明显。然而，这仅在静态RT测试中得到证实，而这可能无法转化为需要大运动技能的比赛场景。因此，本研究的目的是在先前研究结果的基础上，阐明各种美式橄榄球头盔对大运动视觉运动训练表现的影响。16名视力正常/矫正后正常的美国大学体育协会（NCAA）一级橄榄球运动员参与并完成了两项实验（EXP），每项实验条件不同：实验1——改变面罩加固程度，实验2——改变遮阳板/眼罩的透光率。在实验1中，参与者在以下条件下完成敏捷性测试：基线/不戴头盔（BL）、头盔+轻型（HL）、头盔+中型（HM）和头盔+重型（HH）面罩加固。在实验2中，参与者在以下条件下完成敏捷性测试：基线/不戴头盔（BL）、头盔+透明遮阳板（HCV）、头盔+烟色遮阳板（HSV）和头盔+镜面遮阳板（HMV）。对于实验1和实验2中的每种条件下，参与者使用FITLIGHT训练系统完成一项反应敏捷性任务，其中五根杆子总共配备了十个LED传感器，并围绕中心点呈半圆形放置在1米处。要求参与者在灯光亮起时尽快用手跨步并触及每一盏灯。每项反应敏捷性测试总共重复进行三次。分析并比较了不同条件之间以及根据感兴趣的视野（如中央视野与周边视野）的平均反应时间。实验1的结果表明，与BL相比，HL（P = 0.030）、HM（P = 0.034）和HH（P = 0.003）条件下的反应敏捷性变差。面罩条件之间在总体表现上没有差异（P>0.05）。对于实验2，与BL相比，HCV（P<0.001）、HSV（P<0.001）和HMV（P<0.001）条件下的反应敏捷性表现变差。遮阳板条件之间在总体表现上没有差异（P>0.05）。总体而言，这些发现表明美式橄榄球头盔会损害反应敏捷性，这可能导致比赛表现和安全性变差。有必要开展未来研究以探究克服这些损害的训练策略。
