2018/04/09 Home Education and advice
After sustaining a concussion, it is important that you follow a structured protocol to safely return to your regular activities. The priority should be to resume your cognitive activities (i.e. school and work) prior to returning to sports. A trained healthcare professional can help safely guide you through the following steps:
The time needed to move through each step will vary between individuals. In order to successfully complete each step, the recommended task(s) must not provoke symptoms for at least 24 hours. If symptoms occur while trying to complete the designated task(s), you need to return to the previous step until it is well tolerated for 24 hours before trying the next step again.
For example, if you get a headache that persists for the rest of the day after reading for 5 minutes (Step 2) then you are not ready to progress to the next step which requires more concentration such as completing homework (Step 3). You need to return to Step 1 (complete mental rest) for 24 hours and if symptoms subside, you may try Step 2 again.
It is also important to note that according to the Quebec Ministry of Education, students (up to age 17) will need to have a medical note from a physician to confirm their diagnosis and have modifications made to their school schedule.
Return to Play Protocol Following Concussion
Once a full and safe return to learn has been achieved, you may begin the following protocol to resume your physical activities. A trained healthcare professional can also help guide you through the following steps:
As per the return to learn protocol, the time needed to progress through each step may vary. In order to successfully complete each step, the recommended task(s) must not provoke symptoms for at least 24 hours. If symptoms occur while trying to complete the designated task(s), you need to return to the previous step until it is well tolerated for 24 hours before trying the next step again.
For example, if you are ready to start light biking (Step 2) and can only complete 10 minutes and you get a headache that persists for the rest of the day, you need to you to go back to Step 1 (complete mental rest) for 24 hours before trying to bike again if symptoms have subsided.
It is also important to note that according to the Quebec Ministry of Education, students (up to age 17) will need to have a medical clearance from a physician to begin any form of contact sport (Before starting Step 5).
Vanessa Beaumont, Physiotherapist
Kinatex Sport Physio Côte-Vertu
References
http://www.education.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/site_web/documents/SLS/promotion_securite/16-00460_Protocole_de_gestion_des_commotions_cerebrales_AN_1.pdf
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