Abstract
Purpose Collegiate varsity athletes are at risk for sustaining a sports-related concussion,
which can negatively impact performance during academic, social, work, and athletic
endeavors. Because of the complex nature of concussions and high rates of underreporting
by athletes, concussion education, identification, and postinjury care require a collaborative,
multidisciplinary approach. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to describe the
specific responsibilities of the team members along with the established pre- and
postconcussion procedures of one of the oldest university-based multidisciplinary
concussion management programs that is coordinated by speech-language pathology.
Method The authors provide a theoretical review of current best practices for the multidisciplinary
team along with a discussion of baseline and postconcussion neurocognitive assessment
and management procedures directly involving speech-language pathology. Included is
a case example illustrating the postinjury procedures utilized by the team.
Conclusion Management of the complex sequelae of sports-related concussion for the varsity collegiate
athlete necessitates implementation of a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach.
Speech-language pathologists' training in the assessment and treatment of brain injury
provides the team with an objective perspective in the evaluation and postinjury management
of the injured student athlete. While our understanding of concussions has improved
greatly over the past two decades, researchers and clinicians on the front lines of
care recognize that continued voids exist in our knowledge, with the need to continually
explore new methods to identify and manage the complex immediate and potentially long-term
ramifications of concussion.
Keywords
concussion - cognition - symptoms - multidisciplinary
