Salivary Biomarkers for Concussion

Concussion (CC) (also called mild head trauma), which accounts for 85% of all head injuries, is very common in professional and amateur athletes. CC is an injury to the brain resulting from the direct or indirect impact of external mechanical forces, momentarily disrupting its function on a cellular level. Unlike more serious head injury (moderate and severe), which can be diagnosed using neuroimaging techniques (CT, MRI, etc.), patients suffering from CC do not necessarily show visible signs of structural abnormalities. As a result, diagnosis of CC is offen difficult. Recently, several salivary biomarkers (proteins and nucleic acids) of sport related concussion have been identified in professional athletes. However, their reference values have not been determined with sufficient robustness to enable their employment in concussion diagnostic tests.