Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypes of ConcussionSigns and Symptoms of a ConcussionHow Long Does a Concussion Last?After Effects and Post-Concussion SyndromeHow Healthcare Providers Tell if You Have a ConcussionConcussion TreatmentStages of Recovery From a ConcussionConcussion Prevention ProtocolOutlookNext in Concussion GuideHow Concussions Are Diagnosed
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Types of Concussion
Signs and Symptoms of a Concussion
How Long Does a Concussion Last?
After Effects and Post-Concussion Syndrome
How Healthcare Providers Tell if You Have a Concussion
Concussion Treatment
Stages of Recovery From a Concussion
Concussion Prevention Protocol
Outlook
Next in Concussion Guide
Aconcussionis a type oftraumatic brain injury (TBI)that can happen during sports, an accident, or other events involving a blow to the head. The force from the hit that causes aconcussionmakes the head and brain move back and forth rapidly, leading to brain cell damage and chemical changes in the brain.A concussion should be taken seriously.
This article discusses types of concussions, signs and symptoms, treatment, recovery, and how long a concussion lasts.
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Here are the symptoms distinguishing a mild TBI from a moderate to severe one.
Mild
Symptoms of a mild TBI, including concussions, include:
Severe
The symptoms for a moderate to severe TBI may be the same as a mild TBI, but the symptoms may be more extreme, including:
How Long Do Concussion Symptoms Last? Key Signs to Watch For
A concussion can have many differentsymptoms. Here are the signs you may have if you’ve had a concussion or the symptoms to watch for if you think someone around you has had a concussion.
How to Tell if You Have a Concussion
Here are some symptoms you may experience if you have aconcussion:
Signs in Someone Else
The signs you may observe in someone you think has had a concussion include the following:
Athletes and Concussions
Athletes who play certain sports are at a higher risk for concussions. The top five sports with the highest number of head injuries treated in ERs include the following, in ranked order:
When to See a Healthcare Provider for a Concussion
Seek emergency medical treatment for a concussion if any of the following symptoms occur:
If the person suspected of having a concussion has no emergency symptoms, you should closely monitor them in the days following their head injury. Contact a healthcare provider if new symptoms emerge, such as headaches, new concentration problems, or dizziness. When in doubt, seek medical care.
Most people who have had a concussion feel better after a few weeks. The average recovery time from a concussion is 10 days.However, some people will have symptoms that last for a few months.
Let a health provider know if concussion symptoms are not going away or if they worsen when resuming normal activities again.
A mild, one-time concussion does not typically cause permanent damage. There could be permanent effects if a second concussion occurs shortly after the first.
When concussion symptoms last longer than the average time window and impact normal activities of daily living, they are consideredpost-concussion syndrome. A healthcare provider may diagnose post-concussion syndrome after one to two months of persistent symptoms.
An estimated 10% of high school athletes with a concussion will experiencepost-concussion syndrome. The percentage of post-concussion syndrome among other populations ranges from 5% to 30%.
Symptoms associated with post-concussion syndrome include:
There are treatments for post-concussion syndrome, so continue to see a healthcare provider if you or someone you care for may have this aftereffect from a concussion.
There’s no specific test to diagnose a concussion, so healthcare providers gatherimaging tests and informationto determine whether someone has had a concussion.
If an athlete has a suspected concussion while participating in sports, a medical trainer may perform a Sideline Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT-2) test on the sidelines. This covers questions about symptoms, memory, balance, and coordination.
A healthcare provider will ask questions about the loss of consciousness or memory loss (retrograde amnesia) associated with the suspected concussion. The provider will also ask about concussion-related symptoms.
Tests that a healthcare provider may use to help determine a concussion diagnosis include:
The primary recommended treatment for a concussion is rest. This means avoiding physical activities, electronic devices, and reading, all of which can worsen concussion-related symptoms.Mental tasks such as homework or regular work also may make symptoms worse.
For children, rest will include taking time off from school and sports. A healthcare provider can give more guidance on when a child can return to school after having a concussion and may recommend starting with half days.
There also are steps to follow on returning to athletics, ranging from light aerobic activity to full contact and participation in competition as the final steps.
A person with a concussion must see their healthcare provider again for another medical exam before they are cleared to return to normal activities.
Sleep During Concussion RecoverySleepis an essential part of concussion recovery. Having a concussion may affect your ability to fall and stay asleep. Some tips for a better night’s sleep include:Going to sleep and waking up at consistent times every day, even on the weekendsEstablishing a pre-bedtime routine, such as listening to relaxing music and avoiding the use of electronicsAvoiding caffeine in the afternoon and eveningGiving yourself adequate time to sleep each night. Most adults need seven or more hours of sleep.Teens age 13–18 need about nine hours of sleep a night.Talk to a healthcare provider if you have trouble sleeping during concussion recovery.
Sleep During Concussion Recovery
Sleepis an essential part of concussion recovery. Having a concussion may affect your ability to fall and stay asleep. Some tips for a better night’s sleep include:Going to sleep and waking up at consistent times every day, even on the weekendsEstablishing a pre-bedtime routine, such as listening to relaxing music and avoiding the use of electronicsAvoiding caffeine in the afternoon and eveningGiving yourself adequate time to sleep each night. Most adults need seven or more hours of sleep.Teens age 13–18 need about nine hours of sleep a night.Talk to a healthcare provider if you have trouble sleeping during concussion recovery.
Sleepis an essential part of concussion recovery. Having a concussion may affect your ability to fall and stay asleep. Some tips for a better night’s sleep include:
Talk to a healthcare provider if you have trouble sleeping during concussion recovery.
There are three stages of concussion recovery, including the acute symptomatic, recovery, and recovered phases.
Acute Symptomatic Phase
It’s normal to experience some concussion symptoms during this phase. However, you should seek emergency care if any of the following occur during this time:
Recovery
During the “recovery” phase of a concussion, symptoms decrease, and the ability to perform more thinking skills and physical activities without symptoms should occur. Newer research recommends that some exercise during the recovery phase instead of complete rest may aid in concussion recovery.
However, this means exercise like walking or using a stationary bike versus weightlifting or other strenuous exercises that can make symptoms worse. Talk to your healthcare provider before introducing exercise after a concussion.
Recovered
The “recovered” phase indicates that the concussion symptoms are no longer active and it is safe to return to normal activity. Work closely with a healthcare provider to determine your concussion recovery timeline.
Organizations, including the National Football League (NFL) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), have designedconcussion protocolsto establish guidelines for when players can safely return to a sport after a concussion. These protocols assess the following:
The CDC’s protocol for concussions recommends a rest period of 24–72 hours and then the following progression:
Organizations like the NFL are making changes to try to reduce concussions. This includes using “guardian caps,” mushroom-shaped padded coverings over helmets during practices. However, the research on the effectiveness of these devices is mixed, and additional studies are necessary to confirm their benefit in reducing concussions.
Most people who have a concussion recover from them fully with adequate rest and a gradual return to activity. Working with a healthcare provider and following any guidelines during concussion recovery is important. Having multiple concussions can raise the risk of longer-term effects.
16 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Concussion basics.UPMC.Types of concussions.U.S. National Library of Medicine.Traumatic brain injury.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of concussion.American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Sports-related head injury.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Concussion.Beaumont Health.What to expect after a concussion.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What to do after a concussion.American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Concussion.Concussion Legacy Foundation.What is post-concussion syndrome?Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery.Diagnosing and treating concussion.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Managing return to activities.Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.How to sleep with a concussion.Watson NF, et al.Recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult: A joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.J Clin Sleep Med. 2015;11:591-592.University of Michigan Health.Concussion treatment and recovery.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About repeated head impacts.
16 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Concussion basics.UPMC.Types of concussions.U.S. National Library of Medicine.Traumatic brain injury.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of concussion.American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Sports-related head injury.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Concussion.Beaumont Health.What to expect after a concussion.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What to do after a concussion.American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Concussion.Concussion Legacy Foundation.What is post-concussion syndrome?Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery.Diagnosing and treating concussion.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Managing return to activities.Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.How to sleep with a concussion.Watson NF, et al.Recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult: A joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.J Clin Sleep Med. 2015;11:591-592.University of Michigan Health.Concussion treatment and recovery.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About repeated head impacts.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Concussion basics.UPMC.Types of concussions.U.S. National Library of Medicine.Traumatic brain injury.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of concussion.American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Sports-related head injury.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Concussion.Beaumont Health.What to expect after a concussion.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What to do after a concussion.American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Concussion.Concussion Legacy Foundation.What is post-concussion syndrome?Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery.Diagnosing and treating concussion.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Managing return to activities.Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.How to sleep with a concussion.Watson NF, et al.Recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult: A joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.J Clin Sleep Med. 2015;11:591-592.University of Michigan Health.Concussion treatment and recovery.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About repeated head impacts.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Concussion basics.
UPMC.Types of concussions.
U.S. National Library of Medicine.Traumatic brain injury.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of concussion.
American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Sports-related head injury.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Concussion.
Beaumont Health.What to expect after a concussion.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What to do after a concussion.
American Association of Neurological Surgeons.Concussion.
Concussion Legacy Foundation.What is post-concussion syndrome?
Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery.Diagnosing and treating concussion.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Managing return to activities.
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.How to sleep with a concussion.
Watson NF, et al.Recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult: A joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.J Clin Sleep Med. 2015;11:591-592.
University of Michigan Health.Concussion treatment and recovery.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About repeated head impacts.
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