Jason Mihalik, Ph.D., CAT(C), ATC
Professor, Department of Exercise and Sport Science & Co-Director, Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center, College of Arts and Sciences | UNC-Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC, UNITED STATES
Mihalik's research interests include sport-related concussions and the biomechanics related to head trauma.
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Biography
Jason Mihalik is an Associate Professor in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science. He is the Co-Director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center, and also serves as Affiliate Faculty at the UNC Injury Prevention Research Center in the TBI focus area. Jason teaches courses in Biomechanics (EXSS 385) and Undergraduate Research Methods (EXSS 273), and Graduate Statistics and Research Methods. Jason completed his undergraduate degree in Exercise Science with a specialization in Athletic Therapy at Concordia University (Montreal, Quebec, Canada) in 2001. He completed his graduate work in Sports Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA), earning his Master's Degree in December 2004. He was a recipient of a 5-year Royster Fellowship, allowing him to ultimately complete his doctoral work in Human Movement Science at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the summer of 2009.
Jason's primary research interest intersects head trauma biomechanics with clinical outcomes in civilian athletes and military warfighters. He investigates the effectiveness of innovative concussion assessment, management, and rehabilitation technologies. He is additionally interested in the interrelationships between ocular and vestibular function, as well as the utility of neuroimaging and neurophysiology, in the context of the concussion management paradigm. He has developed smartphone applications designed to assist lay rescuers in recognize concussion signs and symptoms and intervene accordingly. He is also the Chief Science Officer for Senaptec LLC, a startup company in the visual and sensory performance space. Jason also studies field management of neurotraumatic spine-related injuries.
Areas of Expertise (8)
Biomechanics of head trauma
Sport-related traumatic brain injury
Concussion management
Postconcussion Syndrome
Concussion Rehabilitation
Neurotraumatic Spine-Related Injuries
Neuroscience
Understanding head trauma in the military
Accomplishments (4)
Director, Exercise and Sport Science Cadaver Anatomy Laboratory (professional)
July 2009 to present
10-time winner (professional)
Canadian Athletic Therapists Association National Writing Award
Advancement of Science Award (professional)
Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association 2014
Member, Royster Society of Fellows (professional)
The UNC Graduate School's select interdisciplinary fellowship program that attracts exceptional graduate students from around the world,
Education (3)
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Ph.D., Human Movement Science 2009
University of Pittsburgh: M.S., Sports Medicine
2004
Concordia University: B.Sc., Exercise Science
Specialization in Athletic Therapy 2001
Links (6)
Media Appearances (7)
How dangerous is football for teens?
ABC 11 Eyewitness News tv
2016-02-15
At the UNC center dedicated to Matt Gfeller, UNC assistant professor Jason Mihalik works with high school football players - Monday morning quarterbacking their technique to prevent a concussion. "He makes the snap but now he immediately comes up and that first point of contact is with his hands. His helmet is in the chest not in the opponent's helmet and the important thing is the helmet is not the first point of contact," Mihalik said as he pointed to the video. "We really want them to get their head out of the play."
Growing concussion awareness prompts changes for coaches, players
WRAL-TV.com online
2016-01-11
It is not only football players at risk for concussions. In soccer, the practice of heading the ball has been controversial. In 2015, the US Soccer Federation issued guidelines banning children 10 years and younger from heading the ball and allowing players 11 to 13 years old to head the ball only during practice. According to Dr. Jason P. Mihalik, co-director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center, heading is not the main problem.
Concussion research at UNC
Time Warner Cable News tv
11-14- 2015
Concussions wrack women's soccer
Daily Tar Heel online
2015-03-05
“Is there something about a hot, humid day where you’re dehydrated, which affects, potentially, your cerebrospinal fluid levels, and so your brain is not as buoyant?” said Dr. Jason Mihalik, co-director of the Gfeller Center and an associate professor in the exercise and sport science department...
The best concussion screening app, based on the literature
Medpage Today: iMedicalApps online
2014-09-02
Developer: Psychological Assessment Resources Inc. in conjunction with concussion experts Jason Mihalik, PhD, Assistant Professor at the Matthew A. Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and Gerard A. Gioia, PhD, Director of the Division of Pediatric Neuropsychology at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC...
New study finds differences in concussion risk between football helmets
Hokie Sports online
2014-01-31
In addition to Rowson and Duma, other authors of this study were Richard Greenwald, Jonathan Beckwith, and Jeffrey Chu of Simbex, Kevin Guskiewicz, and Jason Mihalik of the University of North Carolina, Joseph Crisco and Bethany Wilcox of Brown University, Thomas McAllister of the Indiana University School of Medicine, Arthur Maerlender of Dartmouth College, Steven Broglio of the University of Michigan, Brock Schnebel and Scott Anderson of the University of Oklahoma, and Gunnar Brolinson of the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine...
Concussion app helps parents, coaches determine injuries
The Huffington Post online
8-21-2012 Coaches and parents can use their smartphones or tablets to determine if their young athlete has a concussion, thanks to a mobile app that was created in part by a Canadian. The Concussion Recognition and Response app was co-authored by Canadian Jason Mihalik of the Matthew Gfeller Sport Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Articles (5)
Agreement Between Athlete-Recalled and Clinically Documented Concussion Histories in Former Collegiate Athletes
The American Journal of Sports Medicine
Jan. 2015 Athlete-recalled and clinically documented concussion histories have been used in research on former athletes, but both have limitations. Comparisons of these 2 types of concussion histories are needed to improve the accuracy of estimates of concussion history for future research and clinical care.
Association between concussion and mental health in former collegiate athletes
Injury Epidemiology
11-17-2014 The existing research on the association between concussion and mental health outcomes is largely limited to former professional athletes. This cross-sectional study estimated the association between recurrent concussion and depression, impulsivity, and aggression in former collegiate athletes.
Does Visual Performance Influence Head Impact Severity Among High School Football Athletes?
Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine
Nov. 2014 To compare the odds of sustaining moderate and severe head impacts, rather than mild, between high school football players with high and low visual performance.
Outcomes, utility, and feasibility of single task and dual task intervention programs: preliminary implications for post-concussion rehabilitation
Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport
Nov. 2014 To examine neurocognitive and balance performance in recreational athletes, prior to and following a dual-task training intervention compared to single-task controls in order to assess the utility and feasibility of these interventions in the clinical setting.
Impact locations and concussion outcomes in high school football player-to-player collisions
Pediatrics
Sept. 2014 Little research has examined concussion outcomes in terms of impact location (ie, the area on the head in which the impact occurred). This study describes the epidemiology of concussions resulting from player-to-player collision in high school football by impact location.
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