ADHD and DIRAS Single Nucleotide Polymorphism as an Indicator of Prolonged Concussion Recovery

The purpose of this study was to determine the association between the presence of a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP; rs1412005) within DIRAS2 (i.e., a gene associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and prolonged recovery following a sport-related concussion. A case-control study design was implemented, where cases and controls were selected from a cohort of 117 deidentified concussed athletes. Eleven samples from this patient cohort self-reported ADHD diagnosis and were age and sex-matched to 22 participants with no self-reported ADHD diagnoses. The average recovery times were 21.50 + 13.96 days and 15.66 + 8.50 days for the case and control groups, respectively. The authors found that only 13.6% of the individuals without an ADHD diagnosis recovered in > 30 days (p = 0.044). Also, the authors found that 72.7% of the carriers of the T allele (i.e., minor allele) recovered in greater than 30 days (p = 0.213).  Researchers concluded that individuals with ADHD had a higher risk of prolonged concussion recovery lasting greater than 30 days. Also, carrying the rare allele was associated with prolonged recovery, which suggests this SNP could be a potential genetic marker for both prolonged concussion recovery and the presence of ADHD.