Officials from World Rugby are discussing the results of a wide-ranging investigation into head injuries with one probable outcome being an experimental change in the laws surrounding the tackle.

Rugby has been at the forefront of recent research into head injuries and concussion and a detailed study of more than 600 incidents revealed that 72 percent of the injuries were sustained in a tackle situation.

Adam Ashley-Cooper is led from the field suffering from concussion in a match against the All Blacks in August. Credit:Getty Images

While that figure might not be hugely surprising, what did raise eyebrows was the discovery that 76 percent of the injuries were to the player making the tackle, not the ball carrier.

"We looked at about 15 variables in the tackle, what causes the injuries, and one interesting one we found was that if people are bent at the waist, the ball carrier, you get fewer head injuries," Martin Rafferty, World Rugby's chief medical officer, told reporters.