Optimizing Concussion Care Seeking: A Longitudinal Analysis of Recovery.

BACKGROUND: Approximately half of concussions go undisclosed and therefore undiagnosed. Among diagnosed concussions, 51% to 64% receive delayed medical care. Understanding the influence of undiagnosed concussions and delayed medical care would inform medical and education practices. PURPOSE: To compare postconcussion longitudinal clinical outcomes among (1) individuals with no concussion history, all previous concussions diagnosed, and ≥1 previous concussion undiagnosed, as well as (2) those who have delayed versus immediate symptom onset, symptom reporting, and removal from activity after concussion. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. METHODS: Participants included 2758 military academy cadets and intercollegiate athletes diagnosed with concussion in the CARE Consortium. We determined (1) each participant's previous concussion diagnosis status self-reported at baseline (no history, all diagnosed, ≥1 undiagnosed) and (2) whether the participant had delayed or immediate symptom onset, symptom reporting, and removal from activity. We compared symptom severities, cognition, balance, and recovery duration at baseline, 24 to 48 hours, date of asymptomatic status, and date of unrestricted return to activity using tests of parallel profiles. RESULTS: The ≥1 undiagnosed concussion group had higher baseline symptom burdens (P < .001) than the other 2 groups and poorer baseline verbal memory performance (P = .001) than the all diagnosed group; however, they became asymptomatic and returned to activity sooner than those with no history. Cadets/athletes who delayed symptom reporting had higher symptom burdens 24 to 48 hours after injury (mean ± SE; delayed, 28.8 ± 0.8; immediate, 20.6 ± 0.7), took a median difference of 2 days longer to become asymptomatic, and took 3 days longer to return to activity than those who had immediate symptom reporting. For every 30 minutes of continued participation after injury, days to asymptomatic status increased 8.1% (95% CI, 0.3%-16.4%). CONCLUSION: Clinicians should expect that cadets/athletes who delay reporting concussion symptoms will have acutely higher symptom burdens and take 2 days longer to become asymptomatic. Educational messaging should emphasize the clinical benefits of seeking immediate care for concussion-like symptoms.

Medical Disqualification Following Concussion in Collegiate Student-Athletes: Findings from the CARE Consortium.

BACKGROUND: The absence of evidence-based guidelines make medical disqualification (MDQ) following concussion one of the most challenging decision-making processes faced by sports medicine professionals. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to compare premorbid and postmorbid factors between student-athletes that were and were not medically disqualified from sport following a concussion. METHODS: Among 1832 student-athletes diagnosed with concussion within the CARE Consortium, 53 (2.9%) were medically disqualified (MDQ +) and 1779 (97.1%) were not medically disqualified (MDQ-). We used contingency tables and descriptive statistics for an initial evaluation of a broad list of premorbid and postmorbid factors. For those factors showing association with MDQ status, we calculated odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for the odds of being MDQ + in the presence of the identified factor. RESULTS: History of 2 (OR: 3.2, 95% CI 1.5, 6.9) or 3 + (OR: 7.4, 95% CI 3.4, 15.9) previous concussions; 1 + headaches in past 3 months (OR: 1.8, 95% CI 1.0, 3.2); immediate removal from play (OR: 2.4, 95% CI 1.2, 4.9); alcohol (OR: 2.6, 95% CI 1.2, 5.4), tobacco (OR: 3.3, 95% CI 1.1, 9.5), or marijuana use since injury (OR: 5.4, 95% CI 1.5, 19.0); as well as prolonged recovery due to mental health alterations (OR: 5.3, 95% CI 2.0, 14.1) or motivation/malingering (OR: 7.5, 95% CI 3.3, 17.0) increased odds of being MDQ + . The MDQ + group took longer to become asymptomatic relative to the MDQ- group (MDQ + : 23.5 days, 95% CI 15.8, 31.2; MDQ-: 10.6 days, 95% CI 9.5, 11.6; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: MDQ following concussion was relatively rare. We identified three patterns related to MDQ following concussion: (1) concussion and headache history were the only premorbid factors that differed (2) initial concussion presentation was more severe and more immediate in the MDQ + group, and (3) post-concussion recovery outcomes expressed the greatest differences between groups.

Test-retest, retest, and retest: Growth curve models of repeat testing with Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT).

Computerized neuropsychological testing has become an important tool in the identification and management of sports-related concussions; however, the psychometric effect of repeat testing has not been studied extensively beyond test-retest statistics. The current study analyzed data from Division I collegiate athletes who completed Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) baseline assessments at four sequential time points that varied over the course of their athletic careers. Administrations were part of a larger National Institutes of Health (NIH) study. Growth curve modeling showed that the two memory composite scores increased significantly with successive administrations: Change in Verbal Memory was best represented with a quadratic model, while a linear model best fit Visual Memory. Visual Motor Speed and Reaction Time composites showed no significant linear or quadratic growth. The results demonstrate the effect of repeated test administrations for memory composite scores, while speed composites were not significantly impacted by repeat testing. Acceptable test-retest reliability was demonstrated for all four composites as well.