Investigação da conectividade funcional cerebral baseada em EEG em jogadores de futebol previamente lesionados

Author(s)

Pedro de Asevedo Piquet Carneiro

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Campinas, SP.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin
• Defense date: 2024-12-18

Examining board members

Gabriela Castellano; José Antônio Brum; Marco Carlos Uchida

• Advisor: Gabriela Castellano

Abstract

Hamstring strain injuries (HSIs) remain a prevalent concern among professional football players, often leading to long-term implications for sport performance and health. The neuromuscular adaptations following HSIs, particularly within the central nervous system, are still poorly understood. This study investigates the functional brain connectivity changes in previously injured footballers during motor tasks using electroencephalography (EEG). We analyzed the EEG data from 89 male professional football players, 30 of whom had a history of HSIs, acquired during a maximum-speed knee flexion-extension task. A functional connectivity (FC) analysis focusing mainly on the alpha frequency band using weighted phase-lag index (wPLI) was conducted to explore the potential impact of HSIs on brain function during rigorous motor activity. Our findings revealed a significant decrease in global FC in the alpha frequency band during the motor task compared to rest for all participants, indicating a widespread reduction in alpha connectivity associated with motor activity. Notably, players with a history of HSI exhibited a more pronounced decrease in global alpha connectivity during the task, particularly in the frontal and temporal networks. Furthermore, a significant negative correlation was observed between an injury severity index and alpha FC reduction, mainly in the frontal and parietal networks, implying that more severe and more recent injuries lead to greater cortical adaptations. The observed alterations in brain connectivity suggest that footballers with a history of HSI may need to recruit additional cortical resources to maintain motor performance, potentially influencing their overall injury risk and rehabilitation process. This study provides new insights into the possible impact of HSIs on the FC profile during motor activity and it might represent a first step towards using EEG-based connectivity analysis as a tool for developing targeted rehabilitation protocols and injury prevention strategies tailored to the cognitive profile of each athlete (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 22/14853-4 - Investigation of brain changes in neurological patients with varying degrees of loss of consciousness
• Grantee: Pedro de Asevedo Piquet Carneiro
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master