New AMA Policy Aims to Reduce Risk of Concussion in Youth Sports

CHICAGO — With growing concerns about the negative health effects of sports-related concussions in recent years, the American Medical Association (AMA) voted recently to adopt a new policy aimed at reducing the risk of concussions in young athletes, addressing the need for prompt diagnosis and appropriate concussion-management plans in treating sports-related concussions.

The AMA’s newly adopted policy supports requiring youth athletes who are suspected of having sustained a concussion to be removed immediately from the activity and allowed to return only with a physician’s written consent. The policy also encourages the adoption of evidence-based, age-specific guidelines for physicians, other healthcare professionals, and athletic organizations to use in evaluating and managing concussion in all athletes, as well as the development and evaluation of effective risk-reduction measures to prevent or reduce sports-related injuries and concussions.

“It is essential that athletes know how crucial it is to notify their coach, trainer, physician, or parent if they’ve sustained any type of head injury because even mild cases of traumatic brain injury may have serious and prolonged consequences,” said AMA board member Dr. Jack Resneck Jr. “By raising awareness of the serious risks associated with concussions and ensuring that the appropriate guidelines are in place, we can reduce the number of young athletes who may return to the game too soon, which can put their health at further risk.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 1.6 million and 3.8 million sports- and recreation-related traumatic brain injuries, including concussions and other head injuries, occur in the U.S. every year. A recent study shows that 59{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of middle-school female soccer players reported playing with concussion symptoms, with less than half having been evaluated by a physician or other qualified health professional. A study of high-school athletes with concussions also found that 15{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} returned to play prematurely, and nearly 16{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of football players who sustained a concussion that resulted in loss of consciousness returned to play in less than one day.