Athletes who wait to report a concussion may experience longer recovery times, say University of Florida researchers who found that college players who delayed treatment or removal from play missed an average of five more days of play than athletes who immediately reported concussion symptoms. The study appears in the May issue of the Journal of Athletic Training.
For the UF study, researchers examined data from the University of Florida Concussion Databank, which contains concussion-related medical history and injury details for athletes in UF’s varsity sports programs. The study included 97 male and female athletes participating in basketball, football, gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer, swimming and diving, track and field and volleyball who were diagnosed with a sport-related concussion between 2008 and 2015. Of those, 50 did not immediately report concussion symptoms. Researchers found that athletes who delayed reporting a concussion still took an average of five more days to receive medical clearance to return to play.
Read more at: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-05/uof-dcr050916.php