Research Studies
Neurosurgery Study: Research shows a 31% reduction in the risk of concussion in players wearing Riddell Revolution helmets when compared to traditionally designed helmets.
By Riddell on February 1, 2006UPMC Study Fact Sheet
Background: Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) conducted a three-year on-the-field study of more than 2,000 high school football players to compare how the Riddell Revolution football helmet performed in reducing the risk of concussions compared to standard or traditional helmets.
Key Findings: The study found that the Riddell Revolution provided significantly better protection against concussions than helmets of traditional design.
In relative terms, athletes who wore the Riddell Revolution were 31 percent less likely to suffer a concussion compared to athletes who wore traditional or standard football helmets. For athletes who had never suffered a previous concussion, wearing the Riddell Revolution decreased their relative risk of concussion by 41 percent. Both of these findings were statistically significant.
In absolute terms, 5.3 percent of athletes wearing the Revolution experienced concussion and 7.6 percent of athletes wearing traditional helmets experienced concussion.
The authors estimate that Riddell’s new helmet technology could translate to between 18,000 and 46,000 fewer concussions among the 1.5 million high school students who participate in football each year.
Implications: Introduced in 2002, the Riddell Revolution was the most innovative helmet introduced in more than 25 years – since that time over 1 million high school, college and pro players have made the switch from traditional helmets to the Revolution family of helmets.
While no helmet will prevent all concussions from occurring, this study suggests that the Revolution football helmet reduces the incidence of concussion in high school players when compared to helmets of traditional design. This is a good first step. Hopefully future research, continued improvements in helmet design, and better concussion management strategies will further reduce the risk and severity of concussions to the athlete.
More Information: To find out more about the Riddell Revolution family of products, parents or players should ask their coaches or athletic directors, call 1-800-275-5338, or log onto www.riddell.com.
The entire Neurosurgery, February 2006, Vol. 58, No.2 study
Contact:
Christie Burgner Shein
MSLGROUP
(312) 861-5237
christie.shein@mslgroup.com
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Jake, we still offer g-bar face masks that fit on our Revolution helmets. Please check out our website for models available online. For anything that is not available online, may be available by calling in at...
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I am a member of the Central Middle School FIRST Lego League Robotics team from Kokomo, Indiana. Part of our competition is a research project about the human body. We chose to study football concussions.
We have designed a helmet with extra padding on the outside to absorb impact energy. Have you ever tried that? We also have a neck stabilizer on the helmet so the neck can’t swing forward or backwards in an attempt to lessen the coupe and counter coupe. Are these ideas feasable?
Thank you,
Christian Abney
The extra padding on the outside of the helmet is a great idea. For example, boxing gloves are padded on the outside.
Also why not have a skin type layer on the outside. Afterall, skin flexes and moves during inpact to transfer force to a greater area and absorb more impact. Helmet are hard on the outside. A flexible skinlike layer would disperse more of the energy. Has that been tried?
The problem with that is the fact that such surfaces don’t offer deflection. Soft surfaces absorb the impact, which means they don’t deflect the impact and slide it off the helmet. If the outer shell were soft, we’d have a lot more neck and spinal injuries as a result.