Concussion
Benjamin Wedro, MD, FACEP, FAAEM
Dr. Ben Wedro practices emergency medicine at Gundersen Clinic, a regional trauma center in La Crosse, Wisconsin. His background includes undergraduate and medical studies at the University of Alberta, a Family Practice internship at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario and residency training in Emergency Medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.
Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD
Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.
- What is concussion and what causes concussion?
- What are the types of concussion?
- What are the signs and symptoms of concussion?
- How is concussion diagnosed?
- What is the treatment for concussion?
- How can concussion be prevented?
- What is the future of concussion?
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What is concussion and what causes concussion?
Concussion describes a brain injury where, after an injury, there are functional changes that occur in how the brain works but no structural damage can be seen on standard imaging tests like CT scan.
Mild traumatic brain injury, or concussion, can be defined as a short-lived loss of brain function due to head trauma that resolves spontaneously. With concussion, function may be interrupted but there is no structural damage to the brain.
The brain floats in cerebrospinal fluid and is encased in the skull. These protections allow it to withstand many of the minor injuries that occur in day-to-day life. However, if there is sufficient force to cause the brain to bounce against the rigid bones of the skull, then there is potential for injury. It is the acceleration and deceleration of the brain against the inside of the skull that can cause the brain to be irritated and interrupt its function. The acceleration can come from a direct blow to the head or face, or from other body trauma that causes the head to shake. While temporary loss of consciousness due to injury means that a concussion has taken place, most concussions occur without the patient being knocked out. Studies of football players find that the most of those affected were not aware that they had sustained a head injury.
What are the types of concussion?
All injuries to the brain are potentially serious and devastating. Historically, attempts to decide what symptoms could define a concussion as more or less severe and serious have not been able to adequately describe potential risk or guide the care provider and patient as to when the brain is fully healed.
Concussions in sports are more easily studied than in the general public because of their frequency and the numerous studies on their evaluation and treatment. At present, it is reasonable to think of only one type of concussion, since the mechanism is to shake the brain. More importantly, it is important to recognize that there can be a broad spectrum of symptoms and severity for concussions and understand that most concussion symptoms will resolve themselves within a week or 10 days.
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