X2 Biosystems will supply its Integrated Concussion Evaluation (ICE) software system for use by select teams in the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) during the 2014-2017 soccer seasons. Major League Soccer and the National Football League have already adopted X2's technology, which measures the force of head collisions using a patch adhered behind a player's ear.
ECNL is a non-profit, member-based organization dedicated to the enhancement of the developmental experience of female youth soccer players in the U.S. ICE is a component of X2 Biosystems’ unique, integrated concussion evaluation system, which monitors impact events, promotes adherence to standards of care, coordinates return to activity, and makes an important contribution to the understanding of both acute and long-term brain health outcomes. The touch-screen system creates a durable medical record and adds a level of objective precision in assessing concussive events and other traumatic brain injuries. It uses technology that is both sensitive and robust with the portability, simplicity and ease-of-use that is ideal for soccer players and the demanding conditions of practice and team play.
ECNL teams participating in its introduction will use the X2 ICE system for games and practices. ECNL recently debuted the software at the 2014 ECNL National Playoffs in Seattle, Washington. ECNL Commissioner Sarah Kate Noftsinger believes that adoption of X2 Biosystems’ technology represents an important step forward in the ECNL’s continuing efforts to create the safest possible playing environment for female youth soccer.
“Adopting the very best technology to maximize the level of concussion care we provide for our players is a major priority for our league,” sad Notsinger. “We take our leadership role and our commitment to the health and safety of our players very seriously. X2 Biosystems’ concussion management system is the leading edge technology that represents the most advanced standards for making bench versus play decisions and structures the recovery and return to play process.”
Collaboration with the ECNL leadership represents another important achievement for X2 Biosystems. “We are honored to join with ECNL leadership to help the sideline staff of the ECNL better understand and manage their athletes’ brain health and help lead the way in establishing best practices for the protection of millions of youth who play the game worldwide,” said X2 Biosystems’ Athletic Trainer Phil Heywood, M.S., ATC, AT/L, who also serves as Sports Program Manager and Athletic Training Manager in the Department of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine at Seattle Children's Hospital.
X2 Biosystems believes that the ECNL endorsement of its landmark systems is a logical expansion of its efforts to partner with the soccer community following the adoption of X2 Biosystems’ technology by Major League Soccer earlier this year. According to X2 Biosystems’ CEO Howard Green, “By continuing to demonstrate the value of our system at the elite level of female soccer, the ECNL is helping to pave the way for athletes in all sports at all levels to share in the benefits of X2 Biosystems’ concussion management technology. Kids playing hard and playing safe – that’s what drives us to do what we do every day.”
Green said ECNL’s endorsement is expected to help drive growing adoption of the company's advanced concussion management system. In addition to ECNL, X2 Biosystems is currently working with all 32 NFL teams, Major League Soccer, and other professional and amateur athletic organizations.
