Waterloo company says it can detect concussions through saliva

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.

HeadFirst's saliva tester for concussions.

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.”

Cordssen-David said concussion protocols have remained relatively the same for decades and the system is missing a definitive test for players on the sidelines.

“[Athletes] get run through tests that exist today, which are subjective questionnaires, which include ‘list the months of the year backwards’, ‘where are you right now?’” Cordssen-David explained.

HeadFirst’s test, he added, eliminates the possibility of athletes lying about their condition in the hopes of getting back into the action.

They can also be tested immediately after the injury happens.

“After someone suffers a head impact, the brain swells and the specific biomarkers release from the brain into bodily fluids,” explained Oliver Aramini, a research development engineer with HeadFirst. “That is particularly what our test will measure for.”

The company said the design has reach beyond sports. HeadFirst hopes to see the test benefit healthcare professionals in hospitals, schools, long-term care and the military.

“We really lack something more subjective in [concussion testing],” Shazia Tanvir, HeadFirst’s chief scientist, told CTV News. “This test could be very helpful.”

The company is currently running a pilot study with the University of Waterloo’s men’s and women’s hockey teams.

“It is about safeguarding athlete health,” Cordssen-David said.

The company hopes to get FDA approval and become the first concussion saliva test on the market.