Table 2. Pairwise Post Hoc Comparisons of Biomarker Concentrations Between Athletes Who Had Sustained a Sport-Related Concussion, by RTS Groupa .
| Biomarker | Level, mean (SE), by RTS group, pg/mL | P value | Mean difference (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <14 d | ≥14 d | |||
| Total tau | ||||
| Participants, No. | 31 | 24 | NA | NA |
| Postinjury | −0.06 (0.13) | 0.24 (0.14) | .12 | −0.29 (−0.68 to 0.08) |
| 24-48 h postinjury | −0.65 (0.12) | −0.14 (0.14) | .008 | −0.51 (−0.88 to −0.14) |
| Time of symptom resolution | −0.54 (0.12) | 0.17 (0.14) | <.001 | −0.71 (−1.09 to −0.34) |
| 7 d after unrestricted RTS | −0.30 (0.11) | −0.13 (0.12) | .31 | −0.17 (−0.50 to 0.16) |
| GFAP | ||||
| Participants, No. | 37 | 42 | NA | NA |
| Postinjury | 4.72 (0.12) | 4.39 (0.11) | .04 | 0.33 (0.01 to 0.65) |
| 24-48 h postinjury | 4.37 (0.09) | 4.28 (0.08) | .45 | 0.09 (−0.15 to 0.32) |
| Time of symptom resolution | 4.26 (0.06) | 4.21 (0.06) | .59 | 0.04 (−0.12 to 0.21) |
| 7 d after unrestricted RTS | 4.27 (0.07) | 4.16 (0.06) | .23 | 0.11 (−0.07 to 0.29) |
| Nf-L | ||||
| Participants, No. | 36 | 42 | NA | NA |
| Postinjury | 1.97 (0.07) | 1.92 (0.07) | .59 | 0.05 (−0.14 to 0.25) |
| 24-48 h postinjury | 1.89 (0.07) | 1.87 (0.06) | .81 | 0.02 (−0.16 to 0.21) |
| Time of symptom resolution | 1.98 (0.08) | 1.83 (0.07) | .17 | 0.15 (−0.07 to 0.37) |
| 7 d after unrestricted RTS | 2.05 (0.09) | 1.85 (0.08) | .09 | 0.20 (−0.03 to 0.44) |
Abbreviations: GFAP, glial fibrillary acidic protein; NA, not applicable; Nf-L, neurofilament light chain protein; RTS, return to sport.
a
All variables have been natural log–transformed and the P values and 95% CIs of the difference have been adjusted for multiple comparisons using Bonferroni adjustment.