Would a neck brace prevent whiplashs/concussions?

[JohnZ622]

Hey guys,

Just read about how motorcross and mountain bikers wear a kind of neck brace to help with whiplashs. I think it only works because their helmets are huge and when you shrug your shoulders, the helmet rests on the neck brace and transfers the collision force directly to your thorax/core without going through your cervical spine.

Do you think some sort of neck support can help with hockey concussions?

Click to read more...

 

[damack]

motocross and mountain bikers (I am one) don't have to have their heads on a swivel like a hockey player. They are focused on the trail ahead of them. It would be way too restrictive for a hockey player

 

[JohnZ622]

Don't you have to turn your head when you "change lanes"?

 

[shoeshine boy]

Don't you have to turn your head when you "change lanes"?

I couldn't vouch for motocross but when I go mountain biking there's only one "lane" on the trail so no, not really. my head is looking forward pretty much all the time though I don't think I'd want to wear a huge neck brace while riding.

 

[tarheelhockey]

A motocross-style neck brace wouldn't have any impact since it relies on contact with the helmet to be effective. A hockey helmet wouldn't make contact with the brace unless the neck was bent freakishly far back.

Something like a football neck roll might be slightly more practical, but even then I don't think they're really feasible for hockey players. It's relatively rare for players to get hit straight-on so that their head goes directly backward. Typically the hardest collisions come from the sides, or at least while the head is turned away or downward.

A neck roll might reduce the damage caused by a head-on collision that causes the neck to snap backward, but I'm not sure that's worth even a slight reduction in your range of peripheral vision.

 

[gswift]

IIRC, Rick Vaive used to wear a neck roll while he played for Buffalo...

 

[mrmyheadhurts]

I swore Gary Roberts wore one too for a while but I can't find one picture of it. Perhaps I am misremembering that. It was similar to what linemen wear.

Ha, it was Joe Mullen:

 

[SJGoalie32]

Most of the concussions occur from direct contact to the head (elbow, knee, shoulder, puck, impact into boards, etc). I'm not saying whiplash has never caused an injury or that the effect hasn't increased the severity of a head injury, but I don't think it is a common injury concern.

Many of the serious concussion related head traumas occur on side impacts where the contact with the head occurs in the temple or jaw rather than head-on. The concussive force is lessened in a head-on impact specifically because the neck does flex backwards. In a side impact, the head/neck don't move as far which means a) the neck brace wouldn't do much; and b) the brain absorbs more of the force of the hit.

Something like a football neck roll might be slightly more practical, but even then I don't think they're really feasible for hockey players. It's relatively rare for players to get hit straight-on so that their head goes directly backward. Typically the hardest collisions come from the sides, or at least while the head is turned away or downward.

A neck roll might reduce the damage caused by a head-on collision that causes the neck to snap backward, but I'm not sure that's worth even a slight reduction in your range of peripheral vision.

I just read that even most NFL players have stopped wearing them due to the loss of peripheral vision.

Besides, I don't think those neck braces/rolls do much reduce concussions. The NFL style neck brace/roll is intended to help reduce neck and spinal cord injuries.