Journal of athletic training
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Concussions elicit changes in brain function that may extend well beyond clinical symptom recovery. Whether these changes produce meaningful deficits outside the laboratory environment is unclear. The results of player performance postconcussion within professional sports have been mixed. ⋯ The NHL players in the concussion and lower body injury groups displayed similar performance impairments. Both injured cohorts experienced an initial decrease in performance at weeks 1 to 2 after return to play, followed by improved performance at weeks 5 to 6 after return to play, suggesting that the performance implications of concussion may be short lived.
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The advent of Web-based sports injury surveillance via programs such as the High School Reporting Information Online system and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance Program has aided the acquisition of girls' and women's softball injury data. ⋯ Injury rates were greater in collegiate versus high school softball and in competitions versus practices. These findings highlight the need for injury-prevention interventions, including strength-training and prevention programs to reduce ankle sprains and provide protection for batters from pitches and fielders from batted balls.
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Observational Study
Changes in Patient-Reported Outcome Measures From the Time of Injury to Return to Play in Adolescent Athletes at Secondary Schools With an Athletic Trainer.
Typically, athletic trainers rely on clinician-centered measures to evaluate athletes' return-to-play status. However, clinician-centered measures do not provide information regarding patients' perceptions. ⋯ Adolescent athletes who were injured at a high school with an athletic trainer may have shown improvement in patient-reported outcomes over time, but when they returned to play, their outcome scores remained lower than norms from comparable athlete groups.
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Although sport-related internal organ injuries among athletes are relatively infrequent, combining data sources enables a more comprehensive examination of their incidence. ⋯ Direct-contact internal organ injuries occur infrequently; yet when they do occur, they may result in severe outcomes. These findings suggest that early recognition and a better understanding of the activities associated with the event and use or nonuse of protective equipment are needed.
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The advent of Web-based sports injury surveillance via programs such as the High School Reporting Information Online system and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance Program has aided the acquisition of boys' and men's baseball injury data. ⋯ Injury rates were greater in collegiate versus high school baseball and in competition versus practice. These findings highlight the need for injury-prevention interventions focused on reducing the incidence of upper extremity injuries and protecting batters from pitches and fielders from batted balls.