Citation

Nelson LD, Janecek JK, McCrea MA. Neuropsychol. Rev. 2013; 23(4): 285-299.

Affiliation

Department of Neurology, Division of Neuropsychology, Medical College of Wisconsin, 9200 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI, 53226, USA, linelson@mcw.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s11065-013-9240-7

PMID

24248943

Abstract

Concussion is a highly prevalent injury in contact and collision sports that has historically been poorly understood. An influx of sport-concussion research in recent years has led to a dramatic improvement in our understanding of the injury's defining characteristics and natural history of recovery. In this review, we discuss the current state of knowledge regarding the characteristic features of concussion and typical acute course of recovery, with an emphasis on the aspects of functioning most commonly assessed by clinicians and researchers (e.g., symptoms, cognitive deficits, postural stability). While prototypical clinical recovery is becoming better understood, questions remain regarding what factors (e.g., injury severity, demographic variables, history of prior concussions, psychological factors) may explain individual variability in recovery. Although research concerning individual differences in response to concussion is relatively new, and in many cases limited methodologically, we discuss the evidence about several potential moderators of concussion recovery and point out areas for future research. Finally, we describe how increased knowledge about the negative effects of and recovery following concussion has been translated into clinical guidelines for managing concussed athletes.

Language: en