By Frank Ayala & Alex Stepanek
What Exactly is a Concussion?
• Considered a mild traumatic brain injury
(MTBI)
• Clinical syndrome with immediate and
transient impairment of neural functions.
• No universal agreement on definition of
concussion
• 10 % of all athletic injuries are classified as a
concussion
What Happens Medically
• Result of a blow to the head or other part of the
body causing an acceleration or deceleration of the
brain inside the skull
• Stretching, twisting, and separation of dendritic
branches
• Neurons temporarily dysfunctional but not destroyed
Symptoms of a Concussion
• Headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, balance
problems, feeling slowed down, fatigue, trouble
sleeping, drowsiness, sensitivity to light or noise, loss
of consciousness, blurred vision, amnesia, or
difficulty concentrating.
• Symptoms aren't usually evident until several
minutes to hours after the blow
Concussion Education
• CDC, NFL, NBA, NHL, NFSA, NCAA all are intent
on concussion education
• Some laws establish that athletes, parents,
and coaches be informed about concussion
information
Assessing Concussions
• Thorough clinical evaluation on the field of
play is critical for identification and
management
• Include history of concussions, observations,
palpation, and special tests like balance
• Goal for on field evaluation is to identify life
threatening conditions, if exist
treat as a medical emergency
Assessing Concussion cont.
• Evaluation of signs and symptoms, cognitive
functinoing, and postural stability is the goal
• Use results from neuropsychological tests,
physcial tests, and injurt evaluation to
diagnose
• Symptom checklist and symptom scale
• ImPACT, CogSport, HeadMinder CRI, ANAMSMB are all computerized testing
Multiple Concussions
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Junior Seau
Increased risk after first
3x greater risk if suffered 3 within last 7 years
Longer recovery time
3+ concussions, 8x more likely for LOC, 5x for
amnesia
• Most take place within 10 days of origional
Resuming Participation
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•
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Take out of play immediately
Should be individualized
Standard is 7 days minimal
Slowly resume participation, 24 hours/level,
72 for multiple concussions
• Have evaluation before resuming
• Athletes may lie
• Consider age, history, sport type, severity
Career Ender
• After suffering 2 concussions in a season,
seriously consider ending season
• After 3 in a career, consider ending career in
sport
• 3+ concussions had 5x more cognitive
impairment, 3x memory problems, association
with Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia,
depression
• Parkinson’s Muhammad Ali
Prevention
• Education
• Testing, baseline
• Technology (UNL)
Citation
• President's Council on Fitness, S. &. (2011).
Assessment and Return to Play Following
Sports-Related
Concussion. President's
Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition , Vol. 12
(Issue 1), p.g. 1-10.