A recent study of former NFL players revealed that leaving their sport involuntarily and without a transition plan was associated with greater severity of current depressive and anxiety symptoms. Further researcher is needed to understand how transition-related factors influence functioning in athletes discontinuing participation from sport at lower levels of play (high school, college, etc.).…
Summary: The authors analyzed self-report questionnaire data from over 900 former NFL players (ages 50+). Their results revealed higher prevalence of self-reported MCI and dementia compared to the general population, with self-reported impairment associated with various health-related (reported concussions, depression, anxiety, recent pain, sleep apnea) and demographics-related (age, race) factors. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34593716/ Walton, S. R., Brett,…
Summary: The authors studied 333 former NFL players over a 19-year period to determine factors associated with severity and trajectory of depressive symptoms. Their data revealed an association between concussion history and severity of depression, as well as showed that declining physical functioning was associated with increases in depressive symptoms longitudinally. https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2021/10/17/jnnp-2021-326602 Brett B. L., Kerr Z. Y., Walton S.…
This is the latest update to the Team Physician consensus statement on sport-related concussion developed by the Team Physician Consensus Conference (previous drafts published in 2006 and 2011). The article delineates “essential” information that a team physician must understand and implement and “desirable” information that are considered best-practice in ideal settings. The article then briefly…
The authors of this article documented that concussion education increased concussion care seeking behaviors in NCAA Division I student athletes. Student athletes who had sustained a concussion previously and/or participated in athletic programs with multi-format concussion education were more likely to engage in concussion care seeking than those athletes that had not had those experiences.…
The authors presented research data to indicate that high school student athletes with ADHD did not require more recovery time than neurotypical student athletes. Student athletes with ADHD were able to return to school, and to play, within the same recovery times as their neurotypical pee Cook, N. E., Iverson, G. L., Maxwell, B., Zafonte,…
In the linked article, Brett and colleagues (including other SNS members Drs. Echemendia and McCrea) performed latent profile analysis to identify distinct groups across a range of functional outcomes in a sample of 686 former NFL players ages 50-70. Measures from the Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders and Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System…
The Sports Neuropsychology Society (SNS) previously issued a statement in 2018 following the FDA’s 2-13-2018 announcement regarding a blood test that allows for the detection of bleeding into the brain in cases of traumatic brain injury (“FDA authorizes marketing of first blood test to aid in the evaluation of concussion in adults” https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-authorizes-marketing-first-blood-test-aid-evaluation-concussion-adults). The SNS pointed…
The authors prospectively examined the relationship between sport-related concussions (SRC) and self-reported SRC symptoms, symptom severity, depression, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in high school football players from 31 Wisconsin schools. The Post-concussion Symptom Scale (PCSS), the SCAT-3, the PHQ-9, and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 (PedsQL) were administered at study entry.…
This is a systematic review and meta-analysis examining the benefits of symptom-limited aerobic exercise on persistent concussion symptoms following sport-related concussion in adolescents. Seven RCT studies, representing 326 participants were included in the meta-analysis (Cochrane Collaboration Handbook methodology utilized). When compared to control interventions, results revealed that aerobic exercise was effective (low level of evidence)…