News & Events

The NRL concussion policy states that if a player is diagnosed with a concussion he should not return to the field of play on the day of injury. Further, all clubs will adopt the CogState Sport system to assist doctors to manage a player’s recovery from a concussion. The NRL will fund the roll-out of the CogState Sport system to all clubs.

The release of the NRL policy follows the announcement last week of new concussion management guidelines by the Australian Football League (AFL). The AFL doctors also recommended use of the CogState Sport system by all AFL clubs.

CogState Sport allows an athlete to establish Baseline or "snapshots" of their brains' speed and accuracy by completing four simple tasks. Repeating the same tasks After Injury identifies any cognitive changes from the Baseline performance. This helps indicate whether the brain has fully recovered from the brain injury. Doctors use the concussion test results in making decisions about when it is safe for athletes to return to play or to the classroom.

The CogState test can be taken from any computer. Athlete profiles and testing data are stored securely on-line so that new tests can be taken or viewed from almost any computer with an Internet connection. The CogState test can be completed in 15 minutes on average. Once completed, test results are immediately available. The test results are presented in a simple report that identifies whether or not an athlete has performed the test properly by passing all built-in integrity checks, and whether or not cognitive values are within normal ranges.

CogState CEO, Brad O’Connor stated, "The subject of concussion in sports has received considerable attention in the national media during the past week. Two areas of concern have been put forward. The first concern is the identification and immediate treatment of an Athlete suffering a concussive head injury. The second concern is the management of the Athlete in the post-concussion period and subsequent return to play; this is where the CogState technology can play a vital role in management of the athlete. The CogState test chosen by the AFL Clubs and the NRL is an important tool in an effective concussion management program because it measures what we can’t see – cognitive (brain) function."

Mr O’Connor added, "CogState is proud to lead the way as an innovator in concussion management tools that address the growing need for Baseline and After Injury testing. We believe every athlete should have access to a Baseline test every year".

CogState Ltd (ASX: CGS) specialises in the development and commercialisation of rapid, computerised tests of cognition (brain function). To date, CogState has commercialised its technology in two markets – clinical drug trials and concussion management in sport.

In the clinical drug trial market, CogState technology and associated services are used by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to quantify the effect of drugs or other interventions on human subjects participating in clinical trials. Since sales into the clinical trials market began in 2004, CogState has secured agreements with top pharmaceutical companies including Pfizer, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, Lundbeck, Dainippon Sumitomo, Otsuka, Servier.

In the area of sports related concussion, CogState’s technology has been used by a number of highly regarded institutions and sporting organisations around the world for almost 10 years. Current users include, University of Notre Dame, University of Michigan, English Rugby League, English Jockey Club, Australian Football League, and a number of national and international Rugby League and Rugby Union clubs.

CogState has established a joint venture in the USA, called Axon Sports, to market its concussion management technology. Axon Sports has an exclusive license to market and sell the CogState technology in the area of sports and related concussions within North America (USA, Canada, Mexico).