Sports-Related Concussions & Subconcussive Injuries

Second-impact syndrome occurs when a high school athlete who sustains a head injury - often a concussion or worse injury, such as a cerebral contusion (bruised brain) - sustains a second head injury before symptoms associated with the first injury have cleared. The condition, while rare, causes a sharp increase in intracranial pressure that is almost always fatal, says Dr. Robert Cantu.

Dr. Robert Cantu says it is not just the number of concussions an athlete suffers that are important in determining a course of treatment, but their severity, how close together they occured in time, and how severe the blow that caused them.  "There is no magic number" of concussions disqualifying an athlete from further play that season or is considered career-ending, Dr. Cantu explains.  Individualized management is required which takes into account the totality of circumstances.

Sports concussion expert Dr. Cantu says that no athlete should be allowed to return to play sports after a concussion if still experiencing symptoms.

There are approximately twenty-five signs and symptoms, says Dr. Robert Cantu, that coaches, athletic trainers, health care professionals, parents and athletes should look for which may indicate that an athlete has suffered a concussion.

Dr. Robert Cantu recommends parents seek additional testing and evaluation if their child's post-concussion signs and symptoms do not clear within a week to 10 days or increase in number or severity.

Computerized baseline pre-injury and post-injury neuropsychological testing can be an important part of concussion management, says Dr. Robert Cantu, particularly in terms of identifying cognitive impairment, but  isn't foolproof, does not allow a "red light/green light" decision on return to play, and is only one piece of the assessment puzzle.

Dr. Robert Cantu says it is extremely important that parents and athletes recognize the signs and symptoms of a concussion.  Not only do athletes need to self-report symptoms, says Dr. Cantu, but they should let the coaching and medical staff know if a teammate is experiencing symptoms.  It just might save his life.

The findings in a recent study in the Journal of Athletic Training that female athletes are more prone to concussions than male athletes and take longer to recover are hard to explain, says Dr. Robert Cantu, but may due to several factors.