MONROE - At first, Anna Latimer thought it was just a headache.
After getting kicked in the head during a Monroe High School girls soccer game against Sugar River last May, the goalkeeper recalls diving to make a save and hitting her head. Moments later, she left the game with a concussion and didn't return.
"After I got hit in the head, my vision got blurry and I got dizzy," Latimer said. "I didn't know if I just had a headache."
Would wearing soccer headgear have reduced her risk of sustaining a concussion? It's hard to tell, but Monroe High School is doing its part to help with concussion research as part of a landmark voluntary headgear safety study with the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
"I think it definitely would have helped with the pain of getting hit," Latimer said. "I was very excited when I heard we were in the running for the study. I think it will help so I don't miss another game if I get hit in the head."
Tim McGuine, a senior scientist and lead investigator of the headgear study with the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, said the goal of the first scientific study of its kind is to find out if wearing protective headgear by high school soccer players reduces the risk of concussions and to track the number of days lost to any injury, not just head injuries.
The UW School of Medicine and Public Health received a $300,000 grant from the National Operating Committee of Standards for Athletic Equipment for the two-year study.
"In soccer right now there is a big emphasis on concussions," said McGuine, who is contracted by the Big Ten Conference to conduct injury studies. "I want to see what we can do to keep high school sports safe. That is why we spent $40,000 on headgear."
There is no scientific efficacy testing to see if the headgear reduces the risk of a concussion, and some states like Florida and certain soccer clubs are requiring players purchase headgear to play. There are six types of headgear available to players, but many of them are similar to a padded head band made of memory foam. LDA Headgear in Fond du Lac offers a heavy duty four-piece protective headgear for soccer players that is made out of a patented material similar to Mocks shoes, McGuine said.
"Shooting soccer balls at a dummy in a laboratory doesn't show much," McGuine said. "I don't want to see parents, kids or coaches spend $50 for headgear and find out it does not work. I want to find out if it works."
The Monroe High School boys and girls soccer teams are among the 40 high schools in Wisconsin and 88 high schools and 3,000 athletes across the country who are participating in the study. McGuine and the UW study will collect data by tracking injuries from both the boys and girls soccer teams for two years.
Monroe High School Athletic Director Jeff Newcomer said two parents last spring contacted him about seeing if the high school could be a part of the headgear study. Newcomer met with McGuine.
"It was a win-win," Newcomer said. "Essentially no obligation. It goes toward a good cause. With concussions being what they are these days it's an important issue. If we can find a way to reduce the risk a little bit it definitely makes sense."
McGuine said from 2014-15, according to the National Federation of High School Associations, there were 142,700 concussions in football with 1.1 million participants, but in soccer had just as high of a prevalence of concussions with 109,200 concussions with 810,000 participants.
"I have had parents come up to me and say my son is not playing football he's playing soccer," he said. "With any sport there is a risk of a concussion. It's not just a football problem."
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there were 180,000 emergency room visits due to sports-related concussions from 2000 to 2009, which added up to $60 billion in health care costs.
McGuine said the game could force rule changes with no hitting above the waist like lacrosse has adopted or games could be called tighter to prevent head injuries. The other alternative is to study headgear.
Monroe senior Atticus Pond is a goalkeeper for the Cheesemakers boys soccer team who volunteered to be part of the study and is wearing headgear this season for every practice and game.
"If there is a way to reduce injury as long as it doesn't reduce our level of play I'm all for it," Pond said. "If because of it no one goes up for a header any more I'm not in support of it. If it takes away from the game then I'm not for it."
Pond has seen the toll a head injury or concussion can take on a team and players on the field.
"I've seen parents take their kids off the field because of a concussion," he said. "It's a big problem. Part of my problem is I'm slow to go to the ground. I think it (headgear) could help my game. I think if I'm less worried about my head coming off it could help me."
Each member of the Monroe boys and girls soccer teams who wants to participate in the headgear study must complete a registration from to agree to data collection and sign it along with their parents. Half of the athletes - 1,500 - are assigned to wear the headgear and half are assigned to a control group and will not wear the headgear. Each player participating in the study is required to wear the headgear every practice and game. The Monroe High School athletic trainer Dylan Wittmann will document every injury regardless if it's a head injury or not.
McGuine said the study also will examine whether any aspects of the game changed due to the headgear.
"Some people will say if you wear the headgear you will take more risks," he said.
Monroe boys soccer coach Tony Vasquez sees the benefits of the headgear concussion study.
Vasquez said the Monroe boys soccer team has had two concussions the past three years.
"We have been lucky," Vasquez said in the small number of sports-related soccer concussions. "We didn't have any guys miss any games last year due to injuries. I think it's a good idea. They (headgear) are not as big and bulky as the older ones. If it can save someone from missing games then I think the kids will be interested in them."
After getting kicked in the head during a Monroe High School girls soccer game against Sugar River last May, the goalkeeper recalls diving to make a save and hitting her head. Moments later, she left the game with a concussion and didn't return.
"After I got hit in the head, my vision got blurry and I got dizzy," Latimer said. "I didn't know if I just had a headache."
Would wearing soccer headgear have reduced her risk of sustaining a concussion? It's hard to tell, but Monroe High School is doing its part to help with concussion research as part of a landmark voluntary headgear safety study with the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
"I think it definitely would have helped with the pain of getting hit," Latimer said. "I was very excited when I heard we were in the running for the study. I think it will help so I don't miss another game if I get hit in the head."
Tim McGuine, a senior scientist and lead investigator of the headgear study with the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, said the goal of the first scientific study of its kind is to find out if wearing protective headgear by high school soccer players reduces the risk of concussions and to track the number of days lost to any injury, not just head injuries.
The UW School of Medicine and Public Health received a $300,000 grant from the National Operating Committee of Standards for Athletic Equipment for the two-year study.
"In soccer right now there is a big emphasis on concussions," said McGuine, who is contracted by the Big Ten Conference to conduct injury studies. "I want to see what we can do to keep high school sports safe. That is why we spent $40,000 on headgear."
There is no scientific efficacy testing to see if the headgear reduces the risk of a concussion, and some states like Florida and certain soccer clubs are requiring players purchase headgear to play. There are six types of headgear available to players, but many of them are similar to a padded head band made of memory foam. LDA Headgear in Fond du Lac offers a heavy duty four-piece protective headgear for soccer players that is made out of a patented material similar to Mocks shoes, McGuine said.
"Shooting soccer balls at a dummy in a laboratory doesn't show much," McGuine said. "I don't want to see parents, kids or coaches spend $50 for headgear and find out it does not work. I want to find out if it works."
The Monroe High School boys and girls soccer teams are among the 40 high schools in Wisconsin and 88 high schools and 3,000 athletes across the country who are participating in the study. McGuine and the UW study will collect data by tracking injuries from both the boys and girls soccer teams for two years.
Monroe High School Athletic Director Jeff Newcomer said two parents last spring contacted him about seeing if the high school could be a part of the headgear study. Newcomer met with McGuine.
"It was a win-win," Newcomer said. "Essentially no obligation. It goes toward a good cause. With concussions being what they are these days it's an important issue. If we can find a way to reduce the risk a little bit it definitely makes sense."
McGuine said from 2014-15, according to the National Federation of High School Associations, there were 142,700 concussions in football with 1.1 million participants, but in soccer had just as high of a prevalence of concussions with 109,200 concussions with 810,000 participants.
"I have had parents come up to me and say my son is not playing football he's playing soccer," he said. "With any sport there is a risk of a concussion. It's not just a football problem."
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there were 180,000 emergency room visits due to sports-related concussions from 2000 to 2009, which added up to $60 billion in health care costs.
McGuine said the game could force rule changes with no hitting above the waist like lacrosse has adopted or games could be called tighter to prevent head injuries. The other alternative is to study headgear.
Monroe senior Atticus Pond is a goalkeeper for the Cheesemakers boys soccer team who volunteered to be part of the study and is wearing headgear this season for every practice and game.
"If there is a way to reduce injury as long as it doesn't reduce our level of play I'm all for it," Pond said. "If because of it no one goes up for a header any more I'm not in support of it. If it takes away from the game then I'm not for it."
Pond has seen the toll a head injury or concussion can take on a team and players on the field.
"I've seen parents take their kids off the field because of a concussion," he said. "It's a big problem. Part of my problem is I'm slow to go to the ground. I think it (headgear) could help my game. I think if I'm less worried about my head coming off it could help me."
Each member of the Monroe boys and girls soccer teams who wants to participate in the headgear study must complete a registration from to agree to data collection and sign it along with their parents. Half of the athletes - 1,500 - are assigned to wear the headgear and half are assigned to a control group and will not wear the headgear. Each player participating in the study is required to wear the headgear every practice and game. The Monroe High School athletic trainer Dylan Wittmann will document every injury regardless if it's a head injury or not.
McGuine said the study also will examine whether any aspects of the game changed due to the headgear.
"Some people will say if you wear the headgear you will take more risks," he said.
Monroe boys soccer coach Tony Vasquez sees the benefits of the headgear concussion study.
Vasquez said the Monroe boys soccer team has had two concussions the past three years.
"We have been lucky," Vasquez said in the small number of sports-related soccer concussions. "We didn't have any guys miss any games last year due to injuries. I think it's a good idea. They (headgear) are not as big and bulky as the older ones. If it can save someone from missing games then I think the kids will be interested in them."
