Gloucester Rugby and The Podium Institute for Sports Medicine and Technology at the University of Oxford are joining forces to undertake a revolutionary multimodal study into concussion.

The study's design was approved by the Central Research Ethics Committee of the University of Oxford and is being conducted by Podium Institute researchers.

In a world first, the study employs a high-specification mobile MRI scanner to image elite male rugby union players immediately after a confirmed or suspected concussion - as determined by the current Head Injury Assessment (HIA) protocol.

The scanner will be placed outside Kingsholm Stadium on each match day, and will also follow players at away matches, to allow for structural and functional imaging of the brain within a few hours of head impact, with follow-up scanning at later points where required.

Baseline scans have been acquired for all Gloucester Rugby players participating in the study during the pre-season period, with multiple MRI techniques employed to identify the features most sensitive to brain activity after a positive HIA. Additionally, the baseline scans will be compared to scans in non-elite control groups in contact and non-contact sports.

The MRI scans will be complemented by video footage and acceleration data from existing instrumented mouthguards, to fully capture what happens at the precise moment a player experiences a concussion and enable advanced modelling of the brain.

Several other techniques will be assessed to potentially facilitate more robust, lower-cost prevention and diagnosis in the future, including electroencephalography (EEG), pupillometry and eye-tracking, specialised instrumentation to measure neck strength, a portable balance system to measure stability and balance, and point-of-care blood and saliva tests that can be easily taken pitch-side immediately after a suspected concussion.

Professor Constantin Coussios OBE FREng FMedSci, director of The Podium Institute and Statutory Chair of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Oxford, who is leading the study said: "While conventional CT and MRI scans often appear unremarkable following a concussion, advanced MRI techniques have shown early promise in detecting concussive brain injury - and could potentially aid in diagnosis and predicting long-term outcomes.

"However, logistical constraints - such as most MRI scanners being in hospitals and research institutions - have restricted previous research to scans taken several days after the injury, and imaging within a few hours after concussion has never been attempted.

"Therefore, our current understanding of the early phases of concussion is severely limited. Knowledge about this phase is essential for developing more accurate, low-cost and scalable diagnostic tools, and to better understand potential areas for prevention, early intervention and rehabilitation.

"We are grateful to Gloucester Rugby for their commitment to player welfare, and to the players for their consent to undertake this study, which we hope will be helpful in aiding existing safety measures."

Gloucester Rugby CEO Alex Brown said: "Player safety is the number one priority for our sport. While physicality and specifically, contact, is part of the game, it is the responsibility of all of us to make sure we are doing everything possible to protect our players, regardless of that fact.

"I would like to thank the Podium Institute, the University of Oxford, and the Gloucester Rugby medical department, for their dedication and expertise on this important project."

Subject to player consent, the club's intention is to expand the programme to its women's team, Gloucester Hartpury, once the entirety of the squad returns from the Rugby World Cup.