Videos

Emerging science and expert consensus are challenging the notion that an extended period of complete cognitive and physical rest after concussion is necessary for recovery, and that concussed athletes need no more than 1-2 days rest at home, after which they should return to school with modifications to the school day as needed.

In an emotional video, the first in a series of SmartTeam talks filmed at MomsTEAM Institute's September 2014 sports safety summit, a California man recalls the 2001 death of his 17-year-old nephew from Second Impact Syndrome during a high school football game and how his search for answers became a game-changer.

Dr. William P. Meehan, III, Director of the Sports Concussion Clinic at Boston Children's Hospital. discusses return to play after a sports-related concussion, including successful completion of a graduated exercise protocol, consideration of all clinical factors, including the results of computerized neurocognitive tests, the age of the athlete, and the level of play.

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. 

The response to a head or neck injury in sports depends on the severity at the moment. More serious injuries should be ruled out before assessing an athlete for concussion, says Dr. William P. Meehan, III, MD, Director of the Sports Concussion Clinic at Boston Children's Hospital.

William P. Meehan, III, M.D., Director of the Sports Concussion Clinic and the Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention in the Division of Sports Medicine at Boston Children's Hospital, discusses the four criteria that should be met before an athlete is allowed to return to play after a concussion.

William P. Meehan, III, M.D., Director of the Sports Concussion Clinic and the Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention in the Division of Sports Medicine at Children's Hospital Boston, discusses the many factors an athlete and his or her family should consider in deciding whether to retire from contact or collision sports after multiple concussions.

 

William P. Meehan, III, M.D., Director of the Sports Concussion Clinic and the Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention in the Division of Sports Medicine at Children's Hospital Boston, discusses three ways for an athlete to reduce the risk of concussion: cervical neck strengthening, playing with their head up, and being in good, general physical condition.

At a seminar for parents at Concord-Carlisle (MA) High School in 2007, world-reknowned concussion doctor and MomsTEAM expert emeritus, Robert Cantu, MD, says MomsTEAM and Brooke de Lench were the "pioneers" in educating parents about the dangers of sports concussions back in 2000.

Parents play a vitally important role with respect to concussions, says Kevin Guskiewicz, PhD, ATC., Kenan Distinguished Professor and Director of the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, especially in detecting symptoms of concussion and signs of deteriorating mental status that suggests a more serious brain injury.