Return to Learn

May Mailbag

Dustin Fink5 Comments

As the sports season winds down at the high school I am finally getting to the various emails I have received. I do truly enjoy the many stories and questions I get here, often times they are very learned for me; which translates to more information for you the reader.

I picked out one such email and gained permission to reprint it here. The sole purpose of this email is to get feedback about the return to learn aspect of concussions. Tom would like you to give it a read and make comments below.

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Return To Learn in the High School

I am an athletic trainer in a high school in the north suburbs of Chicago. We have a concussion program in place and see about 80 concussion a year in our athletics. I am fortunate to have some control over the return to learn side of concussions in my school. I have found that this is essential in order to properly manage a concussion. I find when physicians only see an athlete once and set accommodations for a determined amount of time, it does a disservice. The same is true if the time between physician evaluations is too long, especially when kids are kept out of school for long periods of time. I find many concussion students don’t need to be out of school, and those that do usually have their symptoms decrease significantly within 1-3 days.  Many times concussions progress rapidly and Continue reading →

Back to Basics: Current Concussion Management

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What follows below are recommendations that have been on this blog for many years.  I came up with them when it started in 2010 and not much has happened to change what was written.  In fact, more and more these ideas have been accepted, showing that it was ahead of its time in 2010.

AS ALWAYS: PLEASE CONSULT A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL FOR A CONCUSSION, USING THIS BLOG ALONE FOR TREATMENT OF A BRAIN INJURY IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

We can discuss rehabilitation from a concussion at a later time, but the theory of this being a spontaneous and passive recovery for a vast majority of incidences continues.  It has been my experience that the “less is more approach” is best with concussions, initially.  Being, that after injury the less you do to stimulate the brain and rattle the brain the better and faster the outcomes will be.  When the injury lingers on beyond 10-14 days (usually due to too much activity in the initial phases) that is where rehab and a more dynamic approach to recovery is needed.

Please enjoy and remember that back in 2010 this was not mainstream nor widely accepted.  I hope that four years later this is commonplace.

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Sport-Related Concussion, Don and Flo Brady (NASP Communique)

INITIAL STEPS

After an initial concussion the individual should subscribe to REST, not just physical rest, but COMPLETE and UTTER rest.

  • NO TV
  • NO Texting
  • NO Computers
  • NO Radio
  • NO Bright Lights
  • NO Loud Noises
  • NO Reading

COMPLETE brain rest, in other words, SLEEP!  This should be adhered to for at least 24 hours or when the medical professional that you seek (and you should) tells you otherwise.

SCHOOL AGED INDIVIDUALS

Rest should be continued until all signs and symptoms have resolved.  Rest in this demographic should Continue reading →

Return To Learn Conference

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TINY FINALTime is running short for this conference as well, but I thought I would provide another opportunity for people to gain valuable information in the dynamic concussion issue.  A friend of the blog, Katherine Snedaker, is putting on a novel conference; based around the return to learn aspect of concussions.

NORWALK, JAN. 12, 2013 – Katherine Snedaker, MSW and Founder of Pink Concussions, an international social media organization focused on research and resources for female concussions from sports, accidents or military service, and SportsCAPP, a Concussion Education, Advocacy and Policy Group, has announced the dates for The Concussion Conference: Connecticut: Return to School THEN Return to Learn.

The Conference will take place on Thursday January 30th, 2014 at Chelsea Piers Connecticut in Stamford, and then repeat with the same format on Friday, January 31, 2014, at Quinnipiac  University School of Medicine in North Haven, CT.

To register, see http://www.TheConcussionConference.com and to follow on Twitter use #CTBrain.

The Concussion Conference will provide training sessions for school nurses, school staff, pediatricians, athletic trainers, and parents on how best to help children return to school and continue  to heal after concussions.

The Conference daytime training sessions will feature multiple national speakers including Brenda Eagan Brown who is co-author the new 2013 CDC Resource: Helping Students Recover from a Concussion: Classroom Tips for Teachers. Also presenting is Dr. Mike Lee, co-author of the newly issued American Academy of Pediatrics’ report, Returning to Learning Following a Concussion.

You can find the remainder of the Full Press Release HERE.

This event will be on the heels of the Brewer Sports International #C4CT Concussion Summit in NYC.  I wanted to be there as a presenter and as a friend, alas my duty as an athletic trainer will not allow me to do so.  I encourage people and press who have the time to make the Connecticut events as this is a new angle that Katherine is attempting.

In addition to Brenda Eagan Brown, attendees can listen to addresses from Alan Goldberger and TJ Quinn among others, you can find the speaker list HERE.

You can register for the conference HERE.