An official website of the United States government
ImportanceConsequences of subconcussive head impacts have been recognized, yet most studies to date have included small samples from a single site, used a unimodal approach, and lacked repeated testing. ObjectiveTo examine time-course changes in clinical (near point of convergence [NPC]) and brain-injury blood biomarkers (glial fibrillary acidic protein [GFAP], ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase-L1 [UCH-L1], and neurofilament light [NF-L]) in adolescent football players and to test whether changes in the outcomes were associated with playing position, impact kinematics, and/or brain tissue strain. Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis multisite, prospective cohort study included male high school football players aged 13 to 18 years at 4 high schools in the Midwest during the 2021 high school football season (preseason [July] and August 2 to November 19). ExposureA single football season. Main Outcomes and MeasuresThe main outcomes were NPC (a clinical oculomotor test) and serum levels of GFAP, UCH-L1, and NF-L. Participants’ head impact exposure (frequency and peak linear and rotational accelerations) was tracked using instrumented mouthguards, and maximum principal strain was computed to reflect brain tissue strain. Players’ neurological function was assessed at 5 time points (preseason, post–training camp, 2 in season, and postseason). ResultsNinety-nine male players contributed to the time-course analysis (mean [SD] age, 15.8 [1.1] years), but data from 6 players (6.1%) were excluded from the association analysis due to issues related to mouthguards. Thus, 93 players yielded 9498 head impacts in a season (mean [SD], 102 [113] impacts per player). There were time-course elevations in NPC and GFAP, UCH-L1, and NF-L levels. Compared with baseline, the NPC exhibited a significant elevation over time and peaked at postseason (2.21 cm; 95% CI, 1.80-2.63 cm;P < .001). Levels of GFAP and UCH-L1 increased by 25.6 pg/mL (95% CI, 17.6-33.6 pg/mL;P < .001) and 188.5 pg/mL (95% CI, 145.6-231.4 pg/mL;P < .001), respectively, later in the season. Levels of NF-L were elevated after the training camp (0.78 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.14-1.41 pg/mL;P = .011) and midseason (0.55 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.13-0.99 pg/mL;P = .006) but normalized by the end of the season. Changes in UCH-L1 levels were associated with maximum principal strain later in the season (0.052 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.015-0.088 pg/mL;P = .007) and postseason (0.069 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.031-0.106 pg/mL;P < .001). Conclusions and RelevanceThe study data suggest that adolescent football players exhibited impairments in oculomotor function and elevations in blood biomarker levels associated with astrocyte activation and neuronal injury throughout a season. Several years of follow-up are needed to examine the long-term effects of subconcussive head impacts in adolescent football players.
more »
« less
This content will become publicly available on June 3, 2026
A meta-analysis of community engaged learning and thriving in higher education
IntroductionCommunity Engaged Learning (CEL) is recognized for its positive impact on student development in higher education. This meta-analysis examined the effects of CEL on academic, personal, social, and citizenship outcomes among college students. MethodsStudies were identified through PsycINFO, PsycArticles, and ERIC, and were included if they met the following criteria: peer-reviewed English-language publications from 2017 to 2024, alignment with widely accepted definitions of CEL, inclusion of a control group, and sufficient data to calculate effect sizes. Random-effects models were used to estimate Hedges's g, a standardized measure of effect size, for each outcome domain. ResultsOur results showed that CEL had a statistically significant, small to medium effect on academic outcomes (Hedges'sg= 0.344, 95% CI [0.190, 0.497],p< 0.001) and social outcomes (Hedges'sg= 0.371, 95% CI [0.167, 0.575],p< 0.001). The effect on citizenship outcomes was small but significant (Hedges'sg= 0.220, 95% CI [0.096, 0.344],p= 0.001). For personal outcomes, the effect was moderate (Hedges'sg= 0.694, 95% CI [−0.089, 1.477]) but not statistically significant (p= 0.082). The substantial variability observed across studies suggests that differences in CEL implementation, program focus, and student populations may influence outcomes. ConclusionOverall, our findings highlight CEL as an impactful pedagogy that contributes to academic success, personal growth, and civic engagement. Further research may explore the long-term impacts of CEL and identify specific program components that enhance its effectiveness.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 2142330
- PAR ID:
- 10639279
- Publisher / Repository:
- Frontier
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Frontiers in Education
- Volume:
- 10
- ISSN:
- 2504-284X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Abstract Study ObjectiveWe investigated sleep disparities and academic achievement in college. MethodsParticipants were 6,002 first-year college students attending a midsize private university in the southern United States [62.0% female, 18.8% first-generation, 37.4% Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) students]. During the first 3–5 weeks of college, students reported their typical weekday sleep duration, which we classified as short sleep (<7 hours), normal sleep (7–9 hours), or long sleep (>9 hours). ResultsThe odds for short sleep were significantly greater in BIPOC students (95% CI: 1.34–1.66) and female students (95% CI: 1.09–1.35), and the odds for long sleep were greater in BIPOC students (95% CI: 1.38–3.08) and first-generation students (95% CI: 1.04–2.53). In adjusted models, financial burden, employment, stress, STEM academic major, student athlete status, and younger age explained unique variance in sleep duration, fully mediating disparities for females and first-generation students (but only partially mediating disparities for BIPOC students). Short and long sleep predicted worse GPA across students’ first year in college, even after controlling for high school academic index, demographics, and psychosocial variables. ConclusionsHigher education should address sleep health early in college to help remove barriers to success and reduce disparities.more » « less
-
ABSTRACT ObjectiveInflammation may be an integral physiological mechanism through which discrimination impacts cardiovascular health and contributes to racial health disparities. Limited research has examined psychosocial factors that protect against the negative effects of discrimination on inflammation. Perceived control is a promising possible protective factor, given that it has been shown to moderate the relationship between other psychosocial stressors and physiological outcomes. This study thus tested whether systemic inflammation mediated the link between discrimination and cardiovascular health and whether perceived control moderated this relationship. MethodsData for this project included 347 non-Hispanic/Latinx Black adults (mean [standard deviation] age = 51.64 [11.24] years; 33% female) taken from the Midlife in the United States study. Perceived control and daily discrimination were assessed via self-report, and inflammation was measured via circulating levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), fibrinogen, and tumor necrosis factor α. Cardiovascular health was measured by morbidity of cardiovascular conditions: heart disease, hypertension, and/or stroke. ResultsCRP (indirect effect:b =0.004, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.001–0.007) and fibrinogen (indirect effect:b =0.002, 95% CI = 0.0003–0.005) mediated the link between discrimination and cardiovascular conditions. Perceived control moderated the relationship between discrimination and CRP (F(1, 293) = 4.58, ΔR2= 0.013,b= −0.02, SE = 0.01,p= .033). CRP mediated the link between discrimination and cardiovascular conditions only for those who reported low levels of perceived control (Index = −0.003, 95% CI = −0.007 to −0.0001). ConclusionFindings provide empirical evidence of inflammation as a mechanism linking discrimination to cardiovascular conditions among Black Americans. Additionally, perceived control may be protective. Findings could suggest beliefs about control as a potential intervention target to help reduce the negative effects of discrimination on cardiovascular health among Black Americans.more » « less
-
Abstract ObjectivesThis study compared the prevalence of concentrated urine (urine specific gravity ≥1.021), an indicator of hypohydration, across Tsimane' hunter‐forager‐horticulturalists living in hot‐humid lowland Bolivia and Daasanach agropastoralists living in hot‐arid Northern Kenya. It tested the hypotheses that household water and food insecurity would be associated with higher odds of hypohydration. MethodsThis study collected spot urine samples and corresponding weather data along with data on household water and food insecurity, demographics, and health characteristics among 266 Tsimane' households (N = 224 men, 235 women, 219 children) and 136 Daasanach households (N = 107 men, 120 women, 102 children). ResultsThe prevalence of hypohydration among Tsimane' men (50.0%) and women (54.0%) was substantially higher (P < .001) than for Daasanach men (15.9%) and women (17.5%); the prevalence of hypohydration among Tsimane' (37.0%) and Daasanach (31.4%) children was not significantly different (P= .33). Multiple logistic regression models suggested positive but not statistically significant trends between household water insecurity and odds of hypohydration within populations, yet some significant joint effects of water and food insecurity were observed. Heat index (2°C) was associated with a 23% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.09‐1.40,P= .001), 34% (95% CI: 1.18‐1.53,P < .0005), and 23% (95% CI: 1.04‐1.44,P= .01) higher odds of hypohydration among Tsimane' men, women, and children, respectively, and a 48% (95% CI: 1.02‐2.15,P= .04) increase in the odds among Daasanach women. Lactation status was also associated with hypohydration among Tsimane' women (odds ratio = 3.35, 95% CI: 1.62‐6.95,P= .001). ConclusionThese results suggest that heat stress and reproductive status may have a greater impact on hydration status than water insecurity across diverse ecological contexts.more » « less
-
Abstract Objective:To evaluate the economic costs of reducing the University of Virginia Hospital’s present “3-negative” policy, which continues methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus(MRSA) contact precautions until patients receive 3 consecutive negative test results, to either 2 or 1 negative. Design:Cost-effective analysis. Settings:The University of Virginia Hospital. Patients:The study included data from 41,216 patients from 2015 to 2019. Methods:We developed a model for MRSA transmission in the University of Virginia Hospital, accounting for both environmental contamination and interactions between patients and providers, which were derived from electronic health record (EHR) data. The model was fit to MRSA incidence over the study period under the current 3-negative clearance policy. A counterfactual simulation was used to estimate outcomes and costs for 2- and 1-negative policies compared with the current 3-negative policy. Results:Our findings suggest that 2-negative and 1-negative policies would have led to 6 (95% CI, −30 to 44;P< .001) and 17 (95% CI, −23 to 59; −10.1% to 25.8%;P< .001) more MRSA cases, respectively, at the hospital over the study period. Overall, the 1-negative policy has statistically significantly lower costs ($628,452; 95% CI, $513,592–$752,148) annually (P< .001) in US dollars, inflation-adjusted for 2023) than the 2-negative policy ($687,946; 95% CI, $562,522–$812,662) and 3-negative ($702,823; 95% CI, $577,277–$846,605). Conclusions:A single negative MRSA nares PCR test may provide sufficient evidence to discontinue MRSA contact precautions, and it may be the most cost-effective option.more » « less
