We sought to assess the odds and relative risk of concussion in athletes self-reporting a diagnosis of learning disability (LD), attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and LD+ADHD, relative to controls.

Evidence suggests neurodevelopmental disorders (NDs) may be associated with an increased incidence of concussion, however no study has cross-sectionally and longitudinally assessed the associations of ND subtypes with concussion.

2014-2017 Data from the NCAA-DOD Grand Alliance: Concussion Assessment, Research, and ºÃÉ«ÏÈÉú (CARE) Consortium were used to evaluate the likelihood of concussion for athletes with LD (n=429), ADHD (n=1513), and LD+ADHD (n=323), relative to controls (n=31,130). Odds of concussion history prior to enrollment, and relative risk of incurring a concussion following enrollment were calculated for all groups.

The odds of having a concussion history prior to enrollment for athletes with LD was 1.61 (95% CI 1.31,1.97), and relative risk of incurring a concussion following enrollment for athletes with LD was 1.22 (95% CI .88, 1.69). The odds of having a concussion history for athletes with ADHD was 1.92 (95% CI 1.72, 2.14), and relative risk of incurring a concussion for athletes with ADHD was 1.51 (95% CI 1.29, 1.77). The odds of having a concussion history for athletes with LD+ADHD was 1.85 (95% CI 1.47, 2.33) and relative risk of incurring a concussion for athletes with LD+ADHD was 2.62 (95% CI 2.05, 3.35).

These preliminary results suggest NDs are associated with increased odds and relative risk of incurring a concussion, and athletes with LD+ADHD appear to be most susceptible to concussion. The authors acknowledge that CARE does not capture adequate control for athletic exposures like most sport epidemiology studies. Additionally, these were univariate associations and did not account for sport in which athletes were enrolled. Individuals with NDs could have similar risk once exposure, and sport enrollment are controlled for.