Concussions make headlines when they affect NFL players, and there is growing awareness that they can also affect teen athletes.

Every high school and college football program — as well as those for other high-contact sports — should have a concussion management program, says Mark Lovell, PhD, founding director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Sports Medicine Concussion Program.

Among his recommendations:

Put people on the field who understand the injury. This means doctors trained for this task and a certified athletic trainer. Anthony Alessi, MD, co-chair of the American Academy of Neurology’s sports neurology section, suggests that high school teams call local neurologists to see if they will contribute their time. “Even if they charge, they’re the cheapest thing you’re going to pay for compared to hospital visits, scans, and EEGs,” he says.

Use a standardized test to determine if a player is ready to return. The Immediate Post Concussion Assessment and Cognitive (ImPACT) test, developed by Lovell (and in which he discloses a financial interest), measures factors such as attention span, working memory, sustained and selective attention time, response variability, nonverbal problem solving, and reaction time. “Athletes will tell you they’re fine. Kids think they’re invincible,” Lovell says. If all you’re doing is asking them whether their headache’s gone, you’re letting a teenager manage his own brain injury.” In addition to ImPACT — which is used by the NFL, the National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, the U.S. Soccer Federation, and many colleges, universities, and high schools — there are several other concussion tests. Other well-known assessments include the King-Devick rapid sideline screening test,developed at the University of Pennsylvania, the Headminder Concussion Resolution Index, and Australia’s Concussion Sentinel.

Ease back into play. When the player is ready to return and has passed the tests to do so, they shouldn’t go all-out right away. Instead, they should go through a program that gradually prepares them to play. “Just because they don’t have a headache, it doesn’t mean you can go ahead and put them back on the field,” Alessi says. “Your athletic trainer needs to put together a program — first having them walk at a certain pace, then run, then do wind sprints, bike, and lift weights — to see if the player can do those things without a headache or other symptoms.”

Monitor players who’ve had concussions long-term. “Especially for those who’ve had multiple concussions, be alert for signs that they’re getting injured more easily and with less provocation, or that symptoms are lasting longer and are more severe,” Lovell says. This may be a sign of chronic injury.

Lawmakers are also taking up the issue. Several states have passed concussion legislation targeting student athletes. Such measures generally require coaches to temporarily remove student-athletes suspected of having a concussion from competition. Those players must have a doctor’s note before returning to play. 

Several other states are considering similar bills, and in late February, the NFL said it backs such legislation — a switch from the NFL’s stance as recently as 2008.

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