Repeated Concussions in Children Associated with Longer Treatment Duration

Children take longer to recover from a head injury if they have had concussions before, according to a new study.

Mild injuries to the brain or concussions during sports can damage the brain, and can take a while to recover. People who have had repeated concussions have been known to have severe brain damage. Now, a study on children has shown that many factors, including history of brain injuries, symptoms and age, affect the duration of treatment.

For the study, researchers looked at the health records of about 280 patients between the ages of 11 and 22 who were being treated for a head injury.

Researchers found that a history of concussions is associated with longer duration of treatment. Children who had a second concussion within a year were more likely to have a longer duration of treatment; about three times longer than for children without any history of concussion.

"We always counsel patients that in the wake of a concussion, when they want to know what to do, one of the prime pieces of advice is to avoid additional head injury," Michael L. Lipton, MD, PhD, from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, who was not involved in the study, told MedPage."Here we have some pretty compelling evidence that this is very sound advice and people need to be careful in the wake of one concussion about scrupulously observing a period of time where they really avoid a second injury."

The study also found that children older than 13, those with severe head trauma, or those who didn't have loss of consciousness after a concussion were also more likely to spend more time in the hospital.

Researchers say that the findings of this study will help understand and manage concussions in children and teenagers.

"Children with a history of a previous concussion, particularly recent or multiple concussions, are at increased risk for prolonged symptoms after concussion. These findings have direct implications on the management of patients with concussion who are at high risk for repeat injuries," the researchers wrote.

The study is published in the journal Pediatrics.