Hi-tech headset spots concussion

Doctors say the device could be used at football games

A virtual-reality headset could help detect brain injuries within minutes, US researchers have claimed.

It could be used in situations, such as on the football pitch, where people have to determine quickly if someone is concussed, New Scientist reports.

The video-game like device assesses responses to tests designed to pick up poor reactions and memory problems.

A UK A&E specialist said a device that could detect concussion quickly would be "very helpful".

I can imagine it helping people such as those trying to decide if a footballer is OK to carry on playing after he's hurt his head John Heyworth, A&E consultant

It can currently take hours to measure the effects of concussion using cognitive tests carried out by trained staff.

However, the DETECT headset (display enhanced testing for concussion and mild traumatic brain injury) test can give results in around seven minutes, its developers at Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University claim.

If someone who has already suffered mild concussion receives a second blow to the head, it can be fatal or lead to permanent disability.

The researchers say that as well as diagnosing the extent of a head injury, it should be able to pick up early signs of dementia.

'New generation'

The system uses an array of neuropsychological tests designed to pick up reduced reaction times and deficits in working memory.

The wearer sees groups of words, flashing white squares that change position, and a series of shapes with different colours and patterns.

At the same time, instructions are flashed up on the virtual reality display, while verbal commands are given through headphones.

The wearer responds to the commands by pressing one of two buttons on a controller.

John Woodard, a psychologist at the Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago, told New Scientist: "Commercially available computer tasks designed to evaluate the cognitive effects of concussion are limited in their ability to predict 'real world' performance.

"DETECT represents a new generation of assessment technology for evaluating the effects of brain injury."

The device is now being tested in US emergency departments. There are also plans to test it at athletic events.

It is hoped that it could go on sale within three to five years.

Dr John Heyworth, past president of the British Association of Accident and Emergency Medicine, said: "If they are trying to detect concussion quickly, I would be very hopeful of it being helpful.

"I'm not sure it would have a role in A&E departments. But I can imagine it helping people such as those trying to decide if a footballer is OK to carry on playing after he's hurt his head."