According to a study conducted by the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, female soccer players and soccer players who have had a previous concussion recuperate differently from males or players without a history of concussion. Because of these differences, the researchers urge physicians and coaches to take an individualized approach to treating concussion patients.

"Males may have more neck strength and a more favorable head to neck ratio than females," says Alexis Chiang Colvin, MD, Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellow at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. "There is also the possibility that males and females may fall differently."

The study included 234 soccer players (61% female and 39% male) ranging in age from 8 to 24 years old, who were given neuropsychological tests that measured attention, memory, processing speed, and reaction time after their concussion. The results of the tests were analyzed to see if there were group differences in performance between male and female participants and those with a previous history of concussion.

The study found that females performed significantly worse than males on tests of reaction time. Females were also significantly more symptomatic than males. Additionally, there was a trend, although not significant, toward females testing poorly regarding verbal memory and processing speed when compared to males.