{"id":{"repo_id":"calgary","oai_identifier":"oai:ucalgary.scholaris.ca:1880/124019"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/calgary/oai:ucalgary.scholaris.ca:1880/124019","repository":{"repo_id":"calgary","name":"University of Calgary","base_url":"https://ucalgary.scholaris.ca/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"CARE-ing for Concussions: Development of the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) Test: A Novel Upper-Body Post-Concussion Exertion Test","abstract":"Aerobic exercise following concussion is safe, effective, and improves recovery outcomes. Current research examining the relationship between post-concussion exercise and clinical recovery has largely focused on non-disabled athletes who can perform lower body aerobic exercise. For these athletes, post-concussion exercise protocols currently exist and are commonly performed in clinical settings such as the Buffalo Concussion Treadmill Test, Buffalo Concussion Bike Test and the Calgary Concussion Cycle Test (CCCT). However, all of these exertion tests are focused on exercise performed with the lower body and there currently does not exist an upper body specific post-concussion exertion protocol to help inform recovery recommendations. To address the need for more equitable and inclusive concussion research, this research developed a novel arm crank exercise protocol; the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) post-concussion exertion test and compared its physiological utility as a post- concussion exertion test with the CCCT. Physiological data were collected on 20 non-disabled adult participants and 30 non-disabled adolescent participants who performed both the CARE and CCCT to volitional fatigue. Study findings support the use of the CARE test protocol, demonstrating robust physiological response profiles and moderate comparability with the CCCT. This level of comparability was expected given the smaller active muscle mass recruited during arm crank compared to cycle ergometry and participants limited familiarity with arm crank exercise performed to volitional fatigue. Overall, these findings help inform the safe and effective concussion rehabilitation process for underrepresented populations, promoting equity and inclusivity in sport injury and recovery research. This project fills a critical gap in concussion research, providing an inclusive and accessible alternative to lower-body specific exertion tests which cannot be performed by everyone following concussion.","abstract_html":"Aerobic exercise following concussion is safe, effective, and improves recovery outcomes. Current research examining the relationship between post-concussion exercise and clinical recovery has largely focused on non-disabled athletes who can perform lower body aerobic exercise. For these athletes, post-concussion exercise protocols currently exist and are commonly performed in clinical settings such as the Buffalo Concussion Treadmill Test, Buffalo Concussion Bike Test and the Calgary Concussion Cycle Test (CCCT). However, all of these exertion tests are focused on exercise performed with the lower body and there currently does not exist an upper body specific post-concussion exertion protocol to help inform recovery recommendations. To address the need for more equitable and inclusive concussion research, this research developed a novel arm crank exercise protocol; the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) post-concussion exertion test and compared its physiological utility as a post- concussion exertion test with the CCCT. Physiological data were collected on 20 non-disabled adult participants and 30 non-disabled adolescent participants who performed both the CARE and CCCT to volitional fatigue. Study findings support the use of the CARE test protocol, demonstrating robust physiological response profiles and moderate comparability with the CCCT. This level of comparability was expected given the smaller active muscle mass recruited during arm crank compared to cycle ergometry and participants limited familiarity with arm crank exercise performed to volitional fatigue. Overall, these findings help inform the safe and effective concussion rehabilitation process for underrepresented populations, promoting equity and inclusivity in sport injury and recovery research. This project fills a critical gap in concussion research, providing an inclusive and accessible alternative to lower-body specific exertion tests which cannot be performed by everyone following concussion.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Burkart, Joshua James"],"institution":"Kinesiology","degree_name":"Master of Science (MSc)","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Kinesiology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Smirl, Jonathan","Emery, Carolyn"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":["Debert, Chantel","Leddy, John","Teel, Elizabeth"],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-01-17","date_published":"2026-01-17","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:30:36Z","subjects":["concussion","sport related concussion","exertion testing","exercise physiology","cerebral blood flow","traumatic brain injury"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Unless otherwise indicated, this material is protected by copyright and has been made available with authorization from the copyright owner. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/51035"],"render_values":[{"text":"https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/51035","href":"https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/51035","code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/1880/124019","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Smirl, Jonathan","Emery, Carolyn"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["Debert, Chantel","Leddy, John","Teel, Elizabeth"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Burkart, Joshua James"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2026-06"]},{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2026-01-23T16:44:21Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2026-01-17"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["master thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Kinesiology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MSc)"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Calgary"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["concussion","sport related concussion","exertion testing","exercise physiology","cerebral blood flow","traumatic brain injury"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language.iso","label":"Language (ISO)","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Unless otherwise indicated, this material is protected by copyright and has been made available with authorization from the copyright owner. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/51035"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/1880/124019"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Aerobic exercise following concussion is safe, effective, and improves recovery outcomes. Current research examining the relationship between post-concussion exercise and clinical recovery has largely focused on non-disabled athletes who can perform lower body aerobic exercise. For these athletes, post-concussion exercise protocols currently exist and are commonly performed in clinical settings such as the Buffalo Concussion Treadmill Test, Buffalo Concussion Bike Test and the Calgary Concussion Cycle Test (CCCT). However, all of these exertion tests are focused on exercise performed with the lower body and there currently does not exist an upper body specific post-concussion exertion protocol to help inform recovery recommendations. To address the need for more equitable and inclusive concussion research, this research developed a novel arm crank exercise protocol; the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) post-concussion exertion test and compared its physiological utility as a post- concussion exertion test with the CCCT. Physiological data were collected on 20 non-disabled adult participants and 30 non-disabled adolescent participants who performed both the CARE and CCCT to volitional fatigue. Study findings support the use of the CARE test protocol, demonstrating robust physiological response profiles and moderate comparability with the CCCT. This level of comparability was expected given the smaller active muscle mass recruited during arm crank compared to cycle ergometry and participants limited familiarity with arm crank exercise performed to volitional fatigue. Overall, these findings help inform the safe and effective concussion rehabilitation process for underrepresented populations, promoting equity and inclusivity in sport injury and recovery research. This project fills a critical gap in concussion research, providing an inclusive and accessible alternative to lower-body specific exertion tests which cannot be performed by everyone following concussion."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["CARE-ing for Concussions: Development of the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) Test: A Novel Upper-Body Post-Concussion Exertion Test"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Smirl, Jonathan","Emery, Carolyn"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["Debert, Chantel","Leddy, John","Teel, Elizabeth"],"dc:creator":["Burkart, Joshua James"],"dc:date":["2026-06"],"dc:date.accessioned":["2026-01-23T16:44:21Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2026-01-17"],"dc:description.abstract":["Aerobic exercise following concussion is safe, effective, and improves recovery outcomes. Current research examining the relationship between post-concussion exercise and clinical recovery has largely focused on non-disabled athletes who can perform lower body aerobic exercise. For these athletes, post-concussion exercise protocols currently exist and are commonly performed in clinical settings such as the Buffalo Concussion Treadmill Test, Buffalo Concussion Bike Test and the Calgary Concussion Cycle Test (CCCT). However, all of these exertion tests are focused on exercise performed with the lower body and there currently does not exist an upper body specific post-concussion exertion protocol to help inform recovery recommendations. To address the need for more equitable and inclusive concussion research, this research developed a novel arm crank exercise protocol; the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) post-concussion exertion test and compared its physiological utility as a post- concussion exertion test with the CCCT. Physiological data were collected on 20 non-disabled adult participants and 30 non-disabled adolescent participants who performed both the CARE and CCCT to volitional fatigue. Study findings support the use of the CARE test protocol, demonstrating robust physiological response profiles and moderate comparability with the CCCT. This level of comparability was expected given the smaller active muscle mass recruited during arm crank compared to cycle ergometry and participants limited familiarity with arm crank exercise performed to volitional fatigue. Overall, these findings help inform the safe and effective concussion rehabilitation process for underrepresented populations, promoting equity and inclusivity in sport injury and recovery research. This project fills a critical gap in concussion research, providing an inclusive and accessible alternative to lower-body specific exertion tests which cannot be performed by everyone following concussion."],"dc:identifier.doi":["https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/51035"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/1880/124019"],"dc:language.iso":["en"],"dc:rights":["Unless otherwise indicated, this material is protected by copyright and has been made available with authorization from the copyright owner. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission."],"dc:subject":["concussion","sport related concussion","exertion testing","exercise physiology","cerebral blood flow","traumatic brain injury"],"dc:title":["CARE-ing for Concussions: Development of the Calgary Adapted aRm Ergometer (CARE) Test: A Novel Upper-Body Post-Concussion Exertion Test"],"dc:type":["master thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Kinesiology"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MSc)"],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Calgary"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:30:36Z"}