A new company based at the University of Waterloo’s startup incubator has developed a way to test for concussions using saliva. The tests are the brainchild of HeadFirst, whose team includes CEO and co-founder Andrew Cordssen-David — a former Quebec junior hockey player. Born in Montreal, Cordssen-David grew up south of the border playing hockey before he headed to the QMJHL for a few years.
Standing six feet five inches tall, Cordssen-David said his size forced him to play a more intimidating role when he suited up for various teams in Quebec. His physical play resulted in plenty of concussions, allowing him to get used to the testing system. “That was a part of my game, racking up penalty minutes, hits and fights and things like that,” Cordssen-David told Global News.
“So I got exposed to a lot of the sideline concussion tests that existed from a young age.” After his junior hockey career, he landed at the University of Waterloo, where he played for the team as well as studying business and science. “When I ended up going to university and doing my master’s, the master’s was really focused around identifying a problem and finding a solution to that problem,” Cordssen-David explained.
“And for me, the first thing that came to mind was concussions and the subjectivity of the testing that exists today.” During his playing days, Cordssen-David believed he ended up back on the ice despite possibly having a concussion. “I didn’t have really a severe co.