Gaps in concussion management across school-aged children.

OBJECTIVE: Examine how demographic and injury factors impact identification and management of concussion in students. METHODS: Prospective observational cohort. Pre-K - 12th grade students within a large, urban school district reported to school with concussion during 2015-2019. Participants were grouped into Elementary/Middle School (E/MS) and High School (HS) and compared by sex, concussion history, injury setting and mechanism, time to medical evaluation and clearance, absences, and recommended accommodations. RESULTS: 154 E/MS and 230 HS students reported to school with physician-diagnosed concussion. E/MS students experienced fewer concussions at school and from sports than HS. More E/MS males than females sustained concussions, while this difference was reversed for HS. Time-to-evaluation was longer for E/MS, specifically female E/MS students and those injured outside of school. E/MS males were cleared more quickly than females. In contrast, no differences were found between sexes for HS by injury setting, mechanism of injury, or management factors. CONCLUSION: Differences observed in E/MS students by demographic and injury factors are not observed in HS students. Younger students, particularly females or those not injured in school or sports, may be at risk for delayed identification and prolonged time to clearance. Future research should further characterize concussion management in E/MS children.

Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury in Females: A State-of-the-Art Summary and Future Directions.

In this report, we identify existing issues and challenges related to research on traumatic brain injury (TBI) in females and provide future directions for research. In 2017, the National Institutes of Health, in partnership with the Center for Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine and the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, hosted a workshop that focused on the unique challenges facing researchers, clinicians, patients, and other stakeholders regarding TBI in women. The goal of this "Understanding TBI in Women" workshop was to bring together researchers and clinicians to identify knowledge gaps, best practices, and target populations in research on females and/or sex differences within the field of TBI. The workshop, and the current literature, clearly highlighted that females have been underrepresented in TBI studies and clinical trials and have often been excluded (or ovariectomized) in preclinical studies. Such an absence in research on females has led to an incomplete, and perhaps inaccurate, understanding of TBI in females. The presentations and discussions centered on the existing knowledge regarding sex differences in TBI research and how these differences could be incorporated in preclinical and clinical efforts going forward. Now, a little over 2 years later, we summarize the issues and state of the science that emerged from the "Understanding TBI in Women" workshop while incorporating updates where they exist. Overall, despite some progress, there remains an abundance of research focused on males and relatively little explicitly on females.

Differences in Sport-Related Concussion History, Reporting Behavior, and Return to Learn and Sport Timelines in Public versus Private High School Student Athletes.

Objective: To compare: 1) history of sport-related concussion (SRC), 2) Return to learn (RTL) timelines, 3) Return to play (RTP) timelines, and 4) SRC reporting behaviors in high-school student athletes based on school type (public vs. private).Methods: A total of 2,998 athletes recruited from eleven private (n = 2121) and two public schools (n = 877) during the 2018-2019 school year completed an online questionnaire regarding sport participation and SRC history. The questionnaire examined self-reported history of SRC, reporting behavior, and RTL and RTP timelines.Results: Private school athletes were approximately twice as likely to report a history of SRC compared to public school athletes (OR [95% CI]: 2.01 [1.61-2.50], p < .001). There were no significant differences in RTL or RTP timelines between public and private-school athletes (p > .05). For those who did not report their SRC (22.4%), the most common reasons were "a desire to keep playing" (53.7%) and "not believing it was serious enough to report" (52.1%).Conclusions: Athletic trainers and healthcare professionals should be aware of the factors that may influence secondary student athletes' SRC reporting behavior, and associated RTL, and RTP timelines, so they can better target concussion education and overall management for student-athletes.Abbreviations: SRC: Sport-related concussion; RTP: Return to play; RTL: Return to learn.

Concussion reporting, return to learn, and return to play experiences in a sample of private preparatory high school students.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to describe concussion reporting and return to learn and play among high school students. METHODS: Self-reported survey data of 1,999 New England private preparatory high school students who played sports or engaged in recreational activities were collected in 2018. Descriptive and bivariate statistics are presented. RESULTS: Three in ten respondents (31.4%) reported ever sustaining a concussion and 22.0% did not report at least one concussion to an adult. The most common reasons for not reporting included wanting to keep playing their sport (58.0%) and not thinking the injury was that serious (53.6%). Girls and students in higher grades took longer to return to school and sports. A quarter of students reported pretending to have a faster recovery in order to return to school or sports. CONCLUSION: Private school students who play sports or engage in recreational activity may be at risk of sustaining concussions and may not report their symptoms due to a lack of understanding the seriousness of concussion, not wanting to fall behind in school, or out of desire to continue playing their sport. Teachers, coaches, and parents can stress reporting as the first step in recovery.

Concussion Experiences in New England Private Preparatory High School Students Who Played Sports or Recreational Activities.

BACKGROUND: Sports- and recreation-related (SRR) activities are a major cause of adolescent concussions. Most adolescent SRR concussion research has been conducted among public school students. As private schools are qualitatively different from public schools (eg, location, socioeconomic status, sports played), this study explores the concussion experiences of a large group of private high school students. METHODS: We surveyed 2047 New England private preparatory high school students who played sports or engaged in a recreational activity in 2018 about the sports they played, and their self-reported concussion experiences (eg, age at first concussion, if concussions were sports- or recreation-related). Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate statistics are presented. RESULTS: One-third (33.0%) of students who reported engaging in sport- or recreation-related activities self-reported experiencing a concussion in their lifetime. A higher percentage of boys, students who played contact sports, and those who played multiple seasons of school sports reported a concussion. Sex, contact level of primary sport played, and age of first concussion were also significantly associated with reporting a sports- or recreation-related concussion. CONCLUSIONS: A sizeable proportion of private preparatory high school students reported experiencing a concussion, with some students at higher risk. Private preparatory high school-specific concussion prevention strategies may be needed.