Researchers hope to develop a saliva test to diagnose concussion in female athletes by the end of the year.

Research is now being carried out to see if it can work on female players or if a female-specific one is needed.

The study is jointly funded by World Rugby and Marker Diagnostics, a company which specialises in biomarkers.

"The thing we should be able to uncover by the end of this year will be whether concussion expression is different in women or is it just diagnosed differently, and what happens after that concussion," said Patrick O'Halloran, a senior medical adviser at Marker.

"We've seen differences between men and women at baseline. It could be that you need a different panel of biomarkers in women altogether."

Testing has been carried out in the English women's top flight since 2018, including at the Women's World Cup and the 2022 and 2023 Six Nations.

It is set to continue in the English elite game in this summer's Farah Palmer Cup and, potentially, in other women's competitions where HIAs are conducted.

The saliva test is carried out "from a quick, easy and non-invasive mouth swab", which is taken immediately after an impact during a match, immediately after the match and between 36 and 48 hours after the game.

Marker says that "following a concussive event, a cascade of chemical processes occurs in the brain, altering biomarker profiles" and they "will analyse these changes to provide doctors with an accurate biological tool to diagnose concussions".

The research is being conducted at the University of Birmingham.

"Concussion can be difficult to diagnose, particularly in settings such as grass roots sports where evaluation by a specialist clinician is not possible," said Dr Valentina Di Pietro, of the University of Birmingham.

"Consequently, some concussions may go undiagnosed. A non-invasive and accurate diagnostic test using saliva is a real game changer and will provide an invaluable tool to help doctors diagnose concussions more consistently and accurately."