00:00Describe what are some of the side effects a player has to deal with when they get a concussion.
00:05They're typically traumatic brain injuries caused by a direct blow to the head.
00:09This leads to a forced transmission to the brain, which initiates this cascade of metabolic and neurotransmitter injury.
00:15And this leads to inflammation, blood flow changes, and even possible severe axonal injury.
00:21The symptoms of concussions can be as immediate and obvious as loss of consciousness,
00:25seizures or posturing like we've seen with TUA in the past, or balance difficulties.
00:30It can also be delayed and as subtle as slight disorientation, headaches, or mild behavior changes.
00:37For non-athletes that are out there, they come to your office, what's the recovery timeline like for them?
00:44They obviously don't have the same kind of rigorous return to play protocol.
00:48They don't have the trainers or the neurologists or head team physicians in their corner.
00:52But at minimum, they kind of have the same, if they want to do anything athletic related or possibly contact related,
00:58they have that same return to play protocol.
01:00And so, you know, the NFL uses it.
01:02Most organized sports use it.
01:05It's a five-step protocol.
01:06You know, number one, rest.
01:08Then aerobic exercise, like just cardio or treadmill or stationary bike.
01:13Then for a sport-specific exercise, if you're going back to sports.
01:17Then non-contact drills.
01:19And then a full contact practice before clearance.
01:22That's typically a week before they can go back to any kind of contact activity.
01:26Because each stage, you need to pass 24 hours without symptoms before moving on to the next one.
Comments