However scary the thought, most people do recover completely from a concussion with proper medical treatment and supervision. The effects of a concussion , such as imbalance or memory problems, are usually temporary. There are three different grades of concussion. In a grade 1 concussion, you can experience a headache, difficulty focusing, memory loss, dizziness, and nausea. You can usually return to normal activities within a few days following a grade 1 concussion after the symptoms have fully passed.
Minor car accidents and sports accidents are usually what causes a grade 1 concussion. The symptoms of this moderate type of concussion may be similar to a grade 1 concussion, but a grade 2 concussion typically involves a brief loss of consciousness.
This can last for at least a minute but less than five minutes. Again, with any level of brain injury, see a doctor right away. Additional symptoms include brief amnesia, ringing in the ears, and irritability.
A grade 2 concussion requires many days of rest before returning to normal activities. A severe concussion is where you lose consciousness for more than five minutes. The symptoms can also last for weeks before they may begin to subside. Historically, the standard treatment for concussion was to get plenty of rest. However, newer approaches involve therapy to target specific symptoms.
Clinics exist that help determine the most affected system and appropriate therapy for a given symptomology. In addition, a thorough medical examination may be needed before returning to sports or activities with the potential for contact or further head injury. Following a concussion, some people may suffer persisting symptoms, such as memory and concentration problems, mood swings, personality changes, headache, fatigue, dizziness, insomnia and excessive drowsiness for several weeks to months.
This is known as post-concussive syndrome. Patients with post-concussive syndrome should avoid activities that put them at risk for a repeated concussion.
Athletes should not return to play while experiencing these symptoms. Athletes who suffer repeated concussions should consider ending participation in the sport. Second impact syndrome results from acute and often fatal brain swelling that occurs when a second concussion is sustained before complete recovery from a previous concussion.
The impact is thought to cause vascular congestion and increased intracranial pressure, which can occur very rapidly and may be difficult or impossible to control. The risk of second-impact syndrome is higher in sports like boxing, football, ice or roller hockey, soccer, baseball, basketball and skiing.
The CDC reports an average of 1. In most cases, a concussion, usually undiagnosed, had occurred prior to the final one. Helmets and headgear come in many sizes and styles, and must properly fit to provide maximum protection against head injuries. In addition to other safety apparel or gear, helmets or headgear should be worn at all times for:.
The skull protects the brain against penetrating trauma, but does not absorb all the impact of a violent force. The brain is cushioned inside the skull by the surrounding cerebrospinal fluid. Despite this, an abrupt blow to the head, or even a rapid deceleration, can cause the brain to contact the inner side of the skull.
There is a potential for tearing of blood vessels, pulling of nerve fibers and bruising of the brain. Sometimes the blow can result in microscopic damage to the brain cells without obvious structural damage visible on a CT scan.
In severe cases, the brain tissue can begin to swell. Since the brain cannot escape the rigid confines of the skull, severe swelling can compress the brain and its blood vessels, limiting the flow of blood. Without adequate blood flow, the brain does not receive the necessary flow of oxygen and glucose. A stroke can occur. Brain swelling after a concussion has the potential to amplify the severity of the injury.
A blow to the head can cause a more serious initial injury to the brain. A contusion is a bruise of the brain tissue involving bleeding and swelling in the brain. A skull fracture occurs when the bone of the skull breaks. A skull fracture by itself may not necessarily be a serious injury. Sometimes, however, the broken skull bones cause bleeding or other damage by cutting into the brain or its coverings. To develop the most effective, personalized treatments, concussion experts across the country are working to learn more about how these variables impact concussion symptoms and recovery.
The researchers -- including pediatric emergency physician Angela Lumba-Brown , MD, and neurosurgeon Jamshid Ghajar , MD, PhD, both from Stanford's Brain Performance Center -- identified five categories of concussions, which have different symptoms and require different initial treatments:. The findings appear in Neurosurgery.
However, diagnosing concussions and selecting the correct treatments is a bit more complicated than this list may indicate, Ghajar and Lumba-Brown explained. This interdependence isn't all bad news though, because the headache, cognitive and anxiety-mood concussion subtypes often resolve after treating for vestibular and ocular-motor concussion symptoms.
Also, early cardiovascular exercise is recommended for all subtypes. In addition, the experts determined the prevalence of these concussion subtypes in adults and children based on a meta-analysis of previous studies.
The most common subtype depends on when a patient is seen, as well as their medical history and age. The prevalence of the vestibular subtype was also very high for pediatric patients.
The working group also found that sleep disturbance and cervical strain were commonly associated with all five concussion categories. Sleep disturbance symptoms include difficulty falling asleep, frequent awakenings and fatigue, whereas cervical strain symptoms include neck pain, neck stiffness and upper extremity weakness.
According to Lumba-Brown, this work is particularly important because it addresses subtypes in children, a vulnerable subset of patients with unique needs. They often play sports or engage in risk-taking behaviors.
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