The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine updated its 2013 Concussion in Sport position statement emphasizing the need more active concussion management efforts.
What you should know:
1. AMSSM addresses several topics. Among them, the society calls for sports medicine physicians to be more familiar with the psychometric properties of the sideline and the office assessment tools they use.
2. When it comes to treating actively concussed patients, ASMSSM encourages providers to gradually and progressively increase a patient's cognitive activity, while paying close attention to staying below the symptom-exacerbation thresholds.
3. AMSSM also calls for the creation of a multidisciplinary care teams to treat patients with prolonged concussion symptoms.
4. AMSSM said further research is needed to understand the long term effects of concussions and repetitive subconcussive impacts.
5. "This statement is an important document representing 'state of the art' and current standards of care for concussion in sport. It will be valuable for those who care for sports related concussion, as well as for the safety of athletes and active people," AMSSM President Chad Asplund, MD, said.
6. AMSSM published the update in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. To read the entire statement, click here.