Recovery progression and symptom resolution in sport-related mild traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the recovery progression of a group of athletes who participated in a concussion management program based on (1) group analysis and (2) individual analysis.

SETTING: Concussion management clinic.

PARTICIPANTS: Thirty athletes (22 males, 8 females; baseline age = 16.23 ± 2.40 years) who had undergone four assessments: one baseline and three post-injury assessments at 3, 8, 15 days post-injury.

DESIGN: Retrospective clinical.

MAIN MEASURES: Four neurocognitive scores of the Immediate Post-concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) including verbal memory, visual memory, speed of processing and reaction time and also a total symptom score.

RESULTS: Group-analysis showed a clear decline in verbal memory (F(3, 87) = 7.36, p < 0.000) and an increase in self-reported symptoms (χ2 (3, N = 30) = 48.703, p < 0.000), 3 days post-injury. By day 8, athletes had returned to their baseline levels for verbal memory and were not experiencing symptoms. When athletes' scores were examined individually, at 3 days post-injury, 60% of the athletes showed deficits on two or more of the ImPACT variables. This rate dropped to 23% at 8 days post-injury and remained the same (23%) 15 days post-injury.

CONCLUSIONS: In concussion recovery, variability is the rule, rather than the exception, with regard to both impaired neurocognitive functions and recovery duration.