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Cobalt supports new concussion study in collaboration with Gloucester Rugby

We are delighted to share that Cobalt is playing a central role in the new head injury / concussion study being launched in collaboration with Gloucester Rugby and The Podium Institute (University of Oxford). The press release published online today, and in The Times newspaper, confirms that this will be the world’s first study to use a mobile MRI scanner immediately after a suspected concussion in elite rugby players.

How Cobalt is supporting the study

  • We are providing Europe’s only 3.0 Tesla MRI mobile, enabling imaging on-site at match days (including away fixtures) so that scans can be done within just a few hours of a suspected head impact.
  • It will follow Gloucester men’s and Gloucester-Hartpury women’s teams around the country for the next two seasons.

  • Our involvement helps bridge the gap between hospital-based imaging and real-time (on-pitch) brain imaging, making it possible to capture structural and functional brain changes soon after impacts.

We are proud to play a role in this groundbreaking study which reflects Cobalt’s commitment to advancing medical imaging research.

Ben, James, Goril, Jan, and Jono have been heavily involved in getting the study up and running, working closely with other radiographers and CIAs who will also be travelling to games to support its delivery.

Read the full article here: https://thepodiuminstitute.ox.ac.uk/2025/10/02/press-release-gloucester-rugby-and-the-podium-institute-to-partner-on-head-injury-study/

Peter Jezzard – Physicist and Professor of Neuroimaging at the University of Oxford. Goril Holmeslet – MRI Radiographer at Cobalt Health. Tobias Harritz – PHD Student. James Mena – MRI Training Facilitator Clinical lead at Cobalt Health. Jono Humphris – Operations Manager at Cobalt Health. Karen Hackling-Searle – Director of Clinical Operations at Cobalt Health.
Matt Barker – Field service Engineer at Philips. Sally Maclachlan – Key Account Manager, South West and Wales at Philips. James Mena – MRI Training Facilitator Clinical lead at Cobalt Health. Karen Hackling-Searle – Director of Clinical Operations at Cobalt Health. Jono Humphris – Operations Manager at Cobalt Health. Jane Robinson – District General Manager Health Systems at Philips.