Combat Sports Law

There are a growing number of studies showing it is relatively safe to be strangled in the sporting context of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. This week another study was published on this topic looking specifically into whether participant showed measurable cognitive decline after a strangulation submission vs a non strangulation submission. The short answer was they did not.

In the study, titled Cognitive Assessment in Grappling Athletes Following Choke Versus Non-Choke Submissions, the authors took BJJ athletes who had no past history of traumatic brain injury. The volunteers rolled and as soon as they were tapped out via either a strangulation or a limb based submission they underwent the King-Devick test. This test is a rapid number naming assessment tool that examines impairments of eye saccade, attention, cognition, and language function. Basically it looks for immediate subtle and not so subtle signs cognitive impairment.

The results were then compared between the strangulation group and non strangulation group. The authors found that “there were no significant differences” between the groups.

The authors concluded as follows:

In conclusion, this study used the King-Devick platform to measure cognitive effects
after participants succumbed to either a choke or non-choke submission while sparring during a
jiu jitsu training session. There were no significant differences in test failures, total test times, or
individual difference scores between the Choke and Non-Choke groups, suggesting that
cognitive functioning, at least through the King-Devick measure, is not affected by transient
choking episodes

Below is the abstract of the study –

Purpose 

Participation in Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) and mixed martial arts has increased over the last 3 decades. These sports feature submission attacks, including strangles. These strangles, termed “chokes” in this context, primarily limit blood flow to the brain via compression of neck vasculature. There has been discussion in literature of the possibility of measurable cognitive effects following transient choking episodes. The present study used the King-Devick test (KDT) platform, a tablet-based reaction time and accuracy task designed to measure participants’ number recognition, cognition, and verbal expression. This task requires functional vision, saccadic eye movements, comprehension and expression.

Methods 

Volunteer participants were screened for exclusion (prior brain injury) criteria and survey information prior to testing. Athletes were tested with the KDT immediately prior to a BJJ training session, again immediately after succumbing to either a choke (“Choke” arm) or non-choke (“Non-Choke” arm) submission while sparring, and again after a 10-minute rest period following the post-submission test. Analysis was done on Test Failures, Total Test Times, and Individual Difference Scores between baseline and subsequent testing.

Results 

62 (32 Choke, 30 Non-Choke) participants were analyzed. There was no significant difference between Choke and Non-Choke in Test failures (_X²(1,62) = 1.25, p = 0.263), Total Times (t(60) = 0.62, p = 0.540, 95% CI [-3.44, 6.51]), and Individual Difference Scores (t(60) = 0.29, p = 0.776, 95% CI [-2.41, 3.21]).

Conclusions 

There were no significant differences between study arms in any of the 3 analyzed measures. This suggests that cognitive functioning, as measured by the King-Devick test, is not affected by transient choking episodes.