Pioneering research into the health of retired rugby players conducted in New Zealand will be taken to the global arena. The after-effects of concussion have led to the premature retirements of a number of professional rugby players recently, including Riki Hoeata. The initial Rugby Health study proved a sometimes fraught exercise, with researchers and rugby administrators at odds over the significance of the findings. The New Zealand study found that participants from the two rugby groups had sustained substantially more concussions than the non-contact sport group. Some 85% of elite rugby players and 77% of community rugby players reported having had at least one concussion, versus 23% of non-contact sport players.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 07, 2017 19:40 UTC