Evaluating concussion in the context of a public health approach to study concussion prevention has been a focus of concussion research in the past few years. Concussion researchers have followed public health approaches that tend to emphasize prevention over treatment and engage multiple levels of the socio-ecological framework. Some preliminary data suggest that engaging the visual system through a pre-season sports vision training program may improve peripheral vision allowing student-athletes to anticipate blindside hits, which may prevent some concussions from occurring. While prevention programs may be of benefit as a primary prevention strategy, not all concussions will be prevented, requiring the development…

Appropriate management of a patient following concussion includes a brief period of rest, followed by a gradual return-to-activity progression that leads to full participation in school and sports (Halstead, 2013; Valovich McLeod 2017). Successful integration of the healthcare and school environments is important in managing concussions. However, recent literature has reported a disconnect between the beliefs and practices of many members of the concussion management team (Williams, 2015; Weber 2015; Kasamatsu, 2016). While the return to sport component is addressed well in athletic training education, less attention is given to addressing return to school, which leads to a lack of knowledge among athletic trainers in this area…

Appropriate management of a patient following concussion includes a brief period of rest, followed by a gradual return-to-activity progression that leads to full participation in school and sports (Halstead, 2013; Valovich McLeod 2017). Successful integration of the healthcare and school environments is important in managing concussions. However, recent literature has reported a disconnect between the beliefs and practices of many members of the concussion management team (Williams, 2015; Weber 2015; Kasamatsu, 2016). While the return to sport component is addressed well in athletic training education, less attention is given to addressing return to school, which leads to…

Early sports specialization has been associated with an increased risk of overuse injury, however, less is known regarding the psychosocial and mental health considerations of sports specialization. This presentation will review the benefits of sports participation on psychological health, the impact of early sports specialization on overtraining, burnout, and mental health, and recommendations to reduce the risk of these outcomes. Strategies to screen for overtraining and burnout will be discussed with case examples to illustrate practical considerations.