Concussion in French Non-professional Handball League : Efficiency of a Concussion Protocol, the White Card Process

Sport related concussion is a major issue for many contact sports, such as Rugby, Football, Hockey and Handball. The short, medium and long-term issues of such impact are still debated but some studies have pointed the fact that acute concussion, repetitive concussions, and even "sub-concussive" impacts could major the risk of developing brain diseases and cognitive impairments. As a response, some federations like World Rugby set up a concussion protocol, that starts with the referee having the responsibility to issue a blue card when suspecting a concussed player and thus have him off the field for medical examination. The French handball federation (FFHB) as well as its concussion protocol called "Protocole carton blanc", in this study we aim to describe the efficiency of this protocol.

This study will be an epidemiological descriptive and prospective study with a brief questionnaire sent off to any player, above 18 years old, male or female, that had receive a white card during an official match in the French amateur Handball league along two regular season. The results will bring details on how concussion occurs on field and how this protocol is efficient to bring the player to consult a health professional.