Resting-state causal brain connectivity in youth female athletes suggest sex-related differences following subacute concussion.

Objective: Youth male athletes show changes in resting-state causal brain connectivity following subacute concussion; however, little is known about how concussion alters causal brain connectivity in female youth. In this study, we compared resting-state causal brain connectivity in healthy and subconcussed females. Materials and methods: Data from 11 concussed and 15 healthy control female athletes were included in this study. Five minutes of resting state eyes-closed EEG data were collected from all participants. SCAT5 data were also collected from all concussed participants. Causal connectivity was calculated from EEG source data. Network topology was evaluated using the degree assortativity coefficient, a summary statistic describing network structure of information flow between source locations. Results: There were three main results: 1) a qualitative difference in the spatial pattern of the most active connections, marked by posterior connectivity shifting in the concussed group, 2) an increase in the magnitude of connectivity in the concussed group, and 3) no significant difference in degree assortativity between the concussed and control groups. Conclusion: Causal connectivity changes following concussion in females do not follow the same trends reported in males. These findings suggest a potential sex difference in injury response and may have implications for recovery.