New medication for preventing concussion part 2: Contact sports, noncontact sports and the impact on the brain

In a 2014 study on baseline concussion tests, two researchers from Grand Valley State University found “regardless of concussion history, there were few significant differences in neurocognitive scores between athletes of collision, contact, and noncontact sports.” These baseline tests— conducted prior to contact activity—reveal any demonstrable differences in cognitive function among the three types of athletes occurred post-baseline testing.

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New medication for preventing concussion part 1: Concussions and the development of adolescent brains

In a 2012 press release, the Society for Neuroscience published findings from the Journal of Neuroscience that found a correlation between concussions and impaired cognitive development in adolescents and teenagers. The study found traumatic injury affects the brain’s white matter—the structures responsible for relaying information from one section of the brain to another. Since human brains do not reach full maturity until age 25, data suggests young people who suffer concussions sustain significantly more brain trauma than do people 25 and older.

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