A groundbreaking study addresses concussions head on. Dr. Steven Hicks, associate professor of Pediatrics at Penn State College of Medicine, said a spit test may be able to diagnose a concussion and predict how long symptoms will last, keeping athletes safer on the field.
The saliva test measures specific RNA’s to determine whether the signal is disrupted by a head impact. It’s something Hicks hopes can be administered on the sidelines at sports games and deliver results within minutes. The technology Hicks and his team used in their most recent study takes about 24 to 48 hours to return a result.