All Articles by Lindsey Barton Straus, JD

High school girls who suffer concussions in sports do not report a greater number of symptoms, take longer for their symptoms to clear, or return to play later than males, says a surprising new study.  But while the severity and outcome of concussions, as measured in the time symptoms take to clear and for athletes to return to play, do not vary by gender, the type of symptoms reported by girls are more subtle and easily missed than those boys report, say the new authors of the study published in the Journal of Athletic Training.

A 2011 study confirms that football is still responsible for the majority of concussions at the high school level and that the symptoms of concussion clear in most cases within one week, but also shows for the first time the important role computerized neuropsychological testing is playing in concussion assessment and return to play decisions.  

A new Australian study appears to pour cold water on the widely held belief that most athletes can return to their pre-injury level of competition within 12 months after reconstructive surgery to repair an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear.  Instead, fully two-thirds of the athletes studied were found not to have returned to their pre-injury level of competition one year after surgery.

More and more, parents and booster clubs are being asked to raise funds to fill the budget gap school sports programs, in particular, are facing in these tough economic times. Pay to play has become the order of the day. But how many more car washes, bake sales, and 50/50 raffles can parents run? Aren't there any some new ways to raise money for a struggling sports program? How about a fundraising program that not only helps raise money but gives kids a big boost of self-confidence? Something they would love to post on their wall? Enter a new Internet-based company called ProSportsLook.

Consumption of flavored and sports beverages (FSBs) by eighth- and eleventh-grade students is positively linked to the consumption of healthy foods, such as milk, fruit and vegetables, and to increased levels of physical activity but increased consumption of soda pop has the opposite effect, says a new study reported in the October 2010 print issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Bullying, both in its regular and cyber forms, is a big problem, but combating it may start with something small: an embroidered patch with the letters A.A.B (Athletes Against Bullying).

Recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) on the evaluation and treatment of sport-related concussions in children and adolescents based on the latest consensus of experts.

U.S. high school athletes suffer an estimated 9,237 time-loss heat illnesses every year that are serious enough to keep them out of sports for one or more days, according to a new, first-of-its kind report from the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC), with football players most prone to heat illness.

The concussion identification, management and return-to-play policy statement of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) is among the strictest in the country, requiring a 12-day minimum return-to-play waiting period for any athlete suspected of having suffered a concussion.

In addition to the twenty-five states that have passed youth sports concussion safety laws, new concussion safety rules have been enacted both by the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS) and by individual state high school athletic associations in a number of states, including California, Delaware, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey and Tennessee.