Waterloo company says it can detect concussions through saliva – CTV
Nov. 20, 2024
A company in Waterloo, Ont. is using saliva to try and better detect concussions in athletes – before the symptoms even appear.
HeadFirst, working out of the University of Waterloo’s Velocity startup incubator, has developed an easy-to-use test kit.
It’s similar to a COVID-19 test, with the patient spitting onto a receptacle and results come within minutes. Once complete, the test will show either one line, which indicates a negative reading, or two lines indicating the patient is concussed.
Andrew Cordssen-David, the company’s co-founder and CEO, said he played high-level hockey for years and has experience with head trauma.
“I got exposed to a lot of concussions,” he told CTV News. “I’d say less than a handful were documented, and I’d say probably around the same that were undocumented.”
