Background. Rugby league is a physically demanding teamsport and the National Rugby League is the highest-level competition of\r\nrugby league in Australia. Frequent tackles and collisions between players result in a high incidence of injury to players. Concussion\r\ninjuries have been the source of much debate, with reporting varying greatly depending on the definition used. Method. Injury\r\nrecords of 239 players from one professional National Rugby League were analysed during a continuous period of 15 years, with\r\nparticular interest in the incidence and recurrence of concussions and the change in incidence over time. Result. A total of 191\r\nconcussions were recorded, affecting 90 players. The incidence of concussion injuries was found to be 28.33 per 1000 player match\r\nhours, with an increase over time (?? = 0.0217). Multiple concussions were recorded for 51 players. Conclusion. A statistically\r\nsignificant increase in the incidence of concussion injuries was found, without a concurrent increase in the number of head injuries\r\nor total injuries. New rules which mandate removal of players from the field may be beneficial for protection of players on the long\r\nterm, although they risk being counterproductive, if they make players less likely to report their symptoms during matches.
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