Concussion Clinic

A concussion is a temporary brain injury resulting from trauma to the head. Concussions can vary in severity, and it can take minutes to days for symptoms to start. All concussions should be treated with the same initial caution for about 24 to 48 hours to allow the brain time to heal.

Brain imaging is not necessary to diagnose a concussion, so it may not always be recommended following a concussion. Your child’s specialist will carefully evaluate their condition and discuss with you whether imaging is warranted. This decision will be based on factors such as the severity of the symptoms, the nature of the injury and any potential complications that might require further investigation.

General Information About Concussions

Any head injury associated with the following symptoms should be evaluated in the emergency department:

  • Changes in how awake or interactive the child is
  • Concern for skull fracture
  • Memory difficulties
  • Loss of consciousness (blacking out) longer than a few seconds
  • Neck pain
  • Repeated vomiting
  • Severe headache that gets worse over time
  • Seizure activity (convulsions)
  • Unusual behavior
  • Unsteady gait or slurred speech
  • Weakness or numbness in extremities

Any head injury associated with the following symptoms should be evaluated by a physician:

  • Anxiety or nervousness
  • Fatigue
  • Feeling foggy or slowed down
  • Feeling confused
  • Headache
  • More irritable behavior than normal
  • More emotional than normal
  • Nausea
  • Problems concentrating
  • Sensitivity to light or noise

Our Concussion Clinic sees children, adolescents and young athletes who have sustained a concussion within the past 6 weeks. If your child had a concussion more than 3 months ago, they should be seen by a general pediatric neurologist. If the main concern is headaches, they can be seen by one of our post-traumatic headache/migraine specialists.

Our concussion specialists strongly recommend that children, adolescents and youth athletes who have experienced a concussion avoid resuming sports-related activities until they can return to school and engage in cognitive tasks without any recurrence of symptoms. This cautious approach is crucial because returning to physical activities prematurely and sustaining another brain injury before the initial concussion has fully healed can lead to severe medical complications. Our primary concern is to ensure a complete and safe recovery to prevent long-term health issues.