Is it a Concussion or a Brain Injury?
Of course you know that the question isn’t fair – a concussion is a brain injury. And it can be a pretty serious one.
Debates and discussions are heating up when it comes to concussions – especially concussions among children (remember the Sports Head Injury Controversy). In a study to be published next month in the journal Pediatrics, the shocking find was that just calling the brain injury "concussion" meant that people didn’t take it as seriously. If children were diagnosed with "concussion" as opposed to something else (ie "aquired brain injury"), they spent less time in the hospital and returned to school sooner. In spite of the fact that their injury may be as serious or more serious than others.
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And that could be a serious mistake.
Carol DeMatteo, associate clinical professor at the School of Rehabilitation Science at McMaster University in Hamilton, suggests that it’s time to drop the term concussion and start using mild traumatic brain injury.
DeMatteo says,"Even children with quite serious injuries can be labelled as having a concussion. Concussion seems to be less alarming than ‘mild brain injury’ so it may be used to convey an injury that should have a good outcome, does not have structural brain damage and symptoms that will pass."
For more about concussion, various types of sports related head injuries and post-traumatic headache or migraine, try:
- Head sports trauma
- Post-traumatic migraine (HeadWay article)
- Post Concussion Syndrome Symptoms
- Post Concussion Syndrome – causes and treatment
- More on the study in Concussions not taken seriously enough: McMaster researcher
via Help My Hurt