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Concussion Recognition & Evaluation

Sports-Related Concussions: Many Not Diagnosed, Says Study

Nearly a third of patients at two leading sports concussion clinics reported having previously suffered a concussion which went undiagnosed, says a new study, putting them at increased risk of longer recovery from concussion, the cumulative effects of concussive injury, and of second impact syndrome.

Coaches Can Play Important Role in Encouraging Athletes To Report Concussion Symptoms, Studies Find

A growing number of studies challenge the conventional wisdom that inadequate athlete concussion knowledge is the principal barrier to increased concussion symptom reporting.  Because educating youth about the dangers of concussion is unlikely to improve concussion reporting, they say other ways need to be found to increase reporting, among them being to enlist coaches to help create an environment where athletes feel safe in reporting.

NOCSAE and Helmet Sensors: An Ounce Of Prevention

There is still confusion about the recent position, or should I say positions, taken by NOCSAE over the past month, first deciding that the certification of any helmet with a third-party add-on would be viewed as automatically void, then, this past week, making a 180-degree U-turn and leaving it up to the helmet manufacturers to decide whether affixing impact sensors to the inside or outside of a helmet voided the certification.  Unless you read my article on NOCSAE's original decision and Lindsay Barton's this past week on its clarification, and perhaps even if you did, you are probably scratching your head and wondering what the heck is going on!

Well, I am scratching my head, too.

With all the controversy surrounding NOCSAE's recent rulings on the effect of third-party add-ons on helmet certification, what Brooke de Lench and others are wondering is why NOCSAE isn't asking the helmet manufacturers to explain to them and the rest of us how a 2-ounce piece of plastic stuck to a 4+ pound football helmet has them so worried?  Whether the NOCSAE rulings were intended to put the brakes on the market for helmet sensors to give the helmet manufacturers time to catch up, it is hard to see how it won't have exactly that effect, she says.

Baseline Balance and Computerized Neurocognitive Tests Recommended For Sports With High Concussion Risk

William P. Meehan, III, MD, Director of the Sports Concussion Clinic at Boston Children's Hospital, recommends both baseline balance and computerized neurocognitive testing for athletes playing sports with high concussion risk, but two 2012 studies suggest that comparing a concussed athlete's scores on post-concussion neurocognitive tests to those of athletes of the same age and gender is sufficient for purposes of concussion management and return-to-play decision-making. 

PBS Premieres "The Smartest Team: Making High School Football Safer" August 14th & 20th, 2013

The Brooke de Lench documentary, "The Smartest Team: Making High School Football Safer," will have its world television broadcast premiere on the Oklahoma Educational Television Association (OETA)(PBS) on Wednesday, August 14, 2013 at 10:00 p.m. CDT.

Impact Sensors: Brain Sentry

Brain Sentry was founded by a team of award-winning product developers with backgrounds in aerospace, medical products and sports.The result of Brain Sentry's efforts has been the development of an innovative helmet-mounted device that alerts when an athlete suffers a potentially dangerous impact. We help coaches, parents and safety monitors identify players that should be evaluated for a concussion.

NOCSAE Voiding of Certification For Sensor-Equipped Helmets: A Big Blow To Player Safety

Last week many of the technology manufacturers who have been working diligently to produce products to make helmeted sports such as football safer were dealt a severe, if not crippling, blow by the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) when, out of the blue, it decided to view modification of helmets with third-party after-market add-ons as voiding its certification, which could only be regained if the helmet is retested with the add-on. Newcastle Racers wearing three different football helmets

Brooke de Lench believes that the new NOCSAE ruling voiding the certification for sensor-equipped helmets could not have come at a worse time, just as football - from the youth level to the NFL - is gearing up for the 2012 season. If not reversed or modified, de Lench fears that it will have harsh real-world consequences; not just on sensor manufacturers but on player safety and consumer choice.

Underreporting of Concussion By High School Athletes Continues Despite Increased Education

As many as four out of ten of possible concussions sustained by high school athletes are never reported to a coach or medical professional, with less than one in seven  'bell-ringers' being reported, finds an important new study.

Baseline Neurocognitive Concussion Testing: Lack Of Sleep May Skew Results

Athletes who didn't get enough sleep the night before undergoing baseline concussion testing didn't perform as well as expected, say researchers presenting their work at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's 2013 Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL.

Trauma-Triggered Migraine or Concussion? Sometimes It's Difficult To Tell

Headaches are the most commonly reported symptom of concussion, but could be the result of a disorder called trauma-triggered migraines (TTMs) and not the result of a concussion, says a new case study and literature review.
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