文摘
Standard soccer heading results in immediate and measurable alterations in brain function. Changes in short and long term memory function and corticomotor inhibition are detectable immediately after soccer heading. These changes in brain function after just a single session of heading appear transient. These data provide direct evidence of immediate brain functional impairment associated with soccer heading.Questions have been raised over whether soccer heading might have an effect on a player's brain, with particular worry over the proposed link between brain injury and increased risk of dementia. However, until now there have been no studies of the immediate effects of heading in soccer directly on brain function. This study found that just a single session of heading practice resulted in temporary impairment of short and long term memory function and in electrophysiological function of the brain. Whether these effects remain temporary after repeated soccer heading exposure and their long-term consequences on brain health must now be investigated.