Concussion to comeback: Young athlete’s journey after an ATV accident

In the critical early stages following a concussion or other traumatic brain injury, neuropsychologists play an essential role in patient recovery. Their expertise helps assess cognitive function and emotional well-being, ensuring a comprehensive approach to treatment. As highlighted in a recent article, timely intervention from neuropsychologist and SNS member, Dr. Summer Ott, significantly enhanced the…

Ambulatory Assessment in Concussion Clinical Care, Symposium Interview with Dr. Jonathan Hakun

In this video, Maddy Doucette interviews Dr. Jonathan Hakun regarding his upcoming talk at the SNS Symposium in May titled, “Ambulatory Assessment in Concussion Clinical Care”. Dr. Hakun is the director of the Cognitive and Mobile Phenotyping Neurolaboratory at Penn State University College of Medicine. His research is focused on the cognitive neuroscience of aging,…

Is there a relationship between psychological resilience and persisting symptoms associated with mTBI and orthopedic injuries in children?

Is there a relationship between psychological resilience and persisting symptoms associated with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and orthopedic injuries in children? A recent study found that over time, children with higher resilience reported fewer symptoms regardless of whether they experienced an mTBI or orthopedic injury. Parent reports of their children’s symptoms were similar. Teaching…

Are there differences in how collegiate athletes recover from concussions from sports versus non-sport mechanisms of injury (MOI)?

Are there differences in how collegiate athletes recover from concussions from sports versus non-sport mechanisms of injury (MOI)?  Non-sport MOI is responsible for 20% of concussions sustained by collegiate athletes, but how an athlete experiences and recovers from non-sport concussions has not received much scientific study.  Research out of emergency departments has suggested that non-sport…

Exercise-Induced Vision Dysfunction Early After Sport-Related Concussion Is Associated With Persistent Postconcussive Symptoms

What is the relationship between visual dysfunction during exercise and the development of persistent post-concussion symptoms (PPCS)? Adolescent athletes who had a concussion within the past week were administered the King Devick Test, a test used to assess visual dysfunction after concussion, and then completed the Buffalo Treadmill Test (experimental group) or stretching exercises (control…

Association Between Early Return to
School Following Acute Concussion and Symptom Burden at 2 Weeks Postinjury

Chris Vaughan, PsyD, SNS Fellow and current treasurer, collaborated with other SNS members, MaeganSady, PhD and Gerry Gioia, PhD to recently publish the article titled Association Between Early Return toSchool Following Acute Concussion and Symptom Burden at 2 Weeks Postinjury in JAMA Open in Januaryof 2023. In this cohort study, data from over 1600 youth…

SNS Response to NINDS Statement on CTE

In late October 2022, the NIH National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) updated their website and made the following statement: “Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a delayed neurodegenerative disorder that was initially identified in postmortem brains and, research-to-date suggests, is caused in part by repeated traumatic brain injuries” (italics added).   SNS recognizes…

Early Postinjury Screen Time and Concussion Recovery

Objectives: To determine the association between early screen time (7-10 days postinjury) and postconcussion symptom severity in children and adolescents with concussion, as compared to those with orthopedic injury (OI). Methods: This was a planned secondary analysis of a prospective longitudinal cohort study. Participants were 633 children and adolescents with acute concussion and 334 with OI aged…

Characterizing Symptoms Before and Following Concussion in Professional Hockey

Do the types of symptoms matter in the acute evaluation period? Based on this study in professional hockey players by SNS members Jared Bruce & Ruben Echemendia and colleagues they do! Post injury cognitive, somatic/physical, and headache symptoms best differentiated concussed players and active controls. Pre-injury affective/emotional symptoms were also associated with increased likelihood of concussion among…