Skip to main content
Article
Concussion acutely decreases plasma glycerophospholipids in adolescent male athletes
Journal of Neurotrauma
  • Michael R. Miller, The University of Western Ontario
  • Michael Robinson, The University of Western Ontario
  • Robert Bartha, The University of Western Ontario
  • Tanya Charyk Stewart, The University of Western Ontario
  • Lisa Fischer, The University of Western Ontario
  • Gregory A. Dekaban, The University of Western Ontario
  • Ravi S. Menon, The University of Western Ontario
  • J. Kevin Shoemaker, The University of Western Ontario
  • Douglas D. Fraser, The University of Western Ontario
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-15-2021
URL with Digital Object Identifier
10.1089/neu.2020.7125
Abstract

Concussions are frequent in sports and can contribute to significant and long-lasting neurological disability. Adolescents are particularly susceptible to concussions, with accurate determination of the injury challenging. Our previous study demonstrated that concussion diagnoses could be aided by metabolomics profiling and machine learning, with particular weighting on changes in plasma glycerophospholipids (PCs). Here, our aim was to report directional change of PCs after concussion and develop a diagnostic concussion panel utilizing a minimum number of plasma PCs. To this end, we enrolled 12 concussed male athletes at our academic Sport Medicine Concussion Clinic, as well as 17 sex-, age-, and activity-matched healthy controls. Blood was drawn and 71 plasma PCs were measured for statistically significant changes within 72 h of injury, and individual PCs were further analyzed with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Our data demonstrated that 26 of 71 PCs measured were significantly decreased after sports-related concussion (p < 0.01). None of the PCs increased in plasma after concussion. ROC curve analyses identified the top four PCs with areas under the curve (AUCs) ‡0.86 for concussion diagnosis: PCaeC36:0 (0.92; p < 0.001); PCaaC42:6 (0.90; p < 0.001); PCaeC36:2 (0.86; p = 0.001), and PCaaC32:0 (0.86; p = 0.001). Cut-off values in lM were £0.31, 0.22, 5.07, and 4.63, respectively. Importantly, combining these four PCs produced an AUC of 0.96 for concussion diagnoses (p < 0.001; 95% confidence interval, 0.89, 1.00). Our data suggest that as few as four circulating PCs may provide excellent diagnostic potential for adolescent concussion. External validation is required in larger cohorts.

Citation Information
Michael R. Miller, Michael Robinson, Robert Bartha, Tanya Charyk Stewart, et al.. "Concussion acutely decreases plasma glycerophospholipids in adolescent male athletes" Journal of Neurotrauma Vol. 38 Iss. 12 (2021) p. 1662 - 1669
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/kevin-shoemaker/16/