Concussion in Sport - It's more than just a head knock
Figure 2: Neck Pain - Concussion Injuries - Physio Frenchs Forest, Physio Macquarie Park
Our Physiotherapists can treat both acute and chronic concussion symptoms to help get you safely get back to school, work or on the field ASAP.
What is concussion?
A concussion is a brain injury due to the acceleration/deceleration of the brain, usually due to a blow to the head or body. It is NOT the brain banging up against the inside of the skull causing bruising like we once thought, but rather the stretching of the nerve cells within the brain.
How and why do they present like they do?
The stretching/sheering of nerve cells causes them to fire rapidly - tricking the nerves into thinking they have received a signal. Because of the nature of the injury, millions of nerves fire all at the same time and this can be too much for the brain to handle. This will typically result in immediate symptoms like confusion, loss of balance or coordination, loss of memory, seizures, loss of consciousness.
These symptoms generally go away rather quickly but over the next few hours and days an energy deficiency in the brain develops as we initially burnt TONS of energy from the firing of the nerves. Our ATP (energy) levels continue to drop and the person will start to feel fatigued, drowsy and sometimes irritable and emotional.
In humans, our peak energy low is 5 days after concussion and full recovery takes 2-4 weeks before our ATP levels are restored to normal. During this recovery period the brain is vulnerable and another injury during this time we can acquire additive or cumulative effects.
How can we help?
Initially, we can help to clear any nasty red flags that would result in the patient being referred to the Emergency Department or back to the GP. These red flags are rare, but can happen so we want to be sure that Physiotherapy is the right place for the patient.
Once cleared, we enact our concussion protocol which begins with a screen the patient for musculoskeletal, visual and vestibular issues. The patient is then sent home with specific exercises if we detect any abnormalities. Additionally the patient is given a concussion information pack which includes do’s and don’ts for your diet, sleep habits, school/work/sport guidelines.
The patients follow up appointment will consist of a graded exertion test on a treadmill or a bike to determine if physical activity reproduces any concussion symptoms. If the patient does not have these symptoms then they are cleared to return to sport in 2-3 weeks from the initial injury. If the patient fails the physical exertion test then they are re-tested within a couple of days. This test must be passed before returning to sport.
See our expert Physiotherapy team at Frenchs Forest and Macquarie Park!