The “Value Added ” of Neurocognitive Testing After Sports-Related Concussion

concussion is a transient neurologic condition that occurs as a result of traumatic biomechanical force.1 Symptoms may include confusion, disorientation, memory loss, motor unsteadiness, dizziness, headache, or visual disturbances. These symptoms usually occur with no detectable pathologic changes, and traditional neurodiag-nostic tests such as CT, MRI, and electroencephalogram are generally insensitive in measuring the subtle neurologic changes after injury.17 Recent research has indicated that sports-related concussion is a very common injury and that a minimum of 1.5 million concussion injuries occur in American football in the United States alone.2 The diagnosis and management of sports-related concus-sion have traditionally relied heavily on an athlete’s self-report of symptoms, but these symptoms may not always be accurately reported to team medical personnel. However, as many clinicians have recognized, and recent research has suggested, an exclusive reliance on the athlete’s report of symptoms may result in potential exposure to additional injury.15,1