A student-athlete's return of cognitive function after concussion ordinarily goes through two, and sometimes three, phases, depending on the severity of concussion, says sports concussion neuropsychologist, Rosemarie Scolaro Moser, PhD.:
1. Acute Phase: In the initial period after your child sustains a concussion and is still experiencing post-concussion symptoms [2] (which in youth is often longer than one week), it is very important that he not only get as much sleep as possible and limit physical exertion in activities of daily living, but limit scholastic and other cognitive activities (such as reading, studying and visual processing) to allow the brain time to heal and restore its biochemical balance.
True cognitive rest means:
2. Recovery Phase: Once an athlete feels physical improvement (such as their headaches subsiding) and his or her post-concussion neurocognitive test scores have improved, he or she can be allowed to gradually return to a full academic day and phased back into normal activities.
Academic accommodations, however, may be required, because the concussion may still affect their thinking, attention and focus, memory and learning, and speed of mental processing, all of which interfere with school performance.
It is not uncommon for grades to slip as the student cannot keep up with the pace of the school work. As a result, the concussed athlete should:
3. Chronic Phase
In some cases, a student-athlete may experience more long-lasting (e.g. chronic) problems with cognitive function and physical/emotional/sleep symptoms [2], which may require consideration of one or more of the following academic accommodations:
Remember: the point of education is to educate your child and help them master skills, not to burden them with unreasonable expectations.
For more tips on academic accommodations, click here [5].
For more MomsTeam videos featuring Dr. Moser, click here. [6]
1. Moser RS, Glatts C, Schatz P. Efficacy of Immediate and Delayed Cognitive and Physical Rest for Treatment of Sport-Related Concussion. J Pediatrics DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2012.04.012 (in press).
Updated June 19, 2012
Links:
[1] http://fast.wistia.com/embed/iframe/8ee6318e26?videoWidth=640&videoHeight=360&controlsVisibleOnLoad=true&autoPlay=true&popover=true&plugin[postRoll][version]=v1&plugin[postRoll][text]=For more youth sports concussion safety information, click here.&plugin[postRoll][link]=http://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/concussion-safety&plugin[postRoll][style][backgroundColor]=#030303&plugin[postRoll][style][color]=#5cbef2&plugin[postRoll][style][fontSize]=36px&plugin[postRoll][style][fontFamily]=Gill Sans, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif&plugin[socialbar][version]=v1&plugin[socialbar][buttons]=embed-email-twitter-googlePlus-facebook&plugin[socialbar][tweetText]=Return to Class After Concussion Different For Every Student
[2] https://mail.momsteam.com/node/149
[3] https://mail.momsteam.com/node/4973
[4] https://mail.momsteam.com/node/128
[5] https://mail.momsteam.com/node/3319
[6] https://mail.momsteam.com/team-experts/rosemarie-scolaro-moser/videos
[7] https://mail.momsteam.com/memory/recovering-from-concussion-teachers-play-important-role
[8] https://mail.momsteam.com/academic/post-concussion-strategies-for-the-classroom
[9] https://mail.momsteam.com/post-concussion/more-post-concussion-help-students-in-classroom-needed