1 in 4 U.S. Teens Has Had a Concussion

*The following is excerpted from an online article posted on HealthDay.

Nearly one in four American teens has suffered at least one concussion, according to new research.

And though more teens are self-reporting sports-related concussions, visits to the emergency room for these traumatic head injuries fell between 2012 and 2018.

“One reason that could explain why adolescents who participate in sports saw an increase in self-reported concussion could be due to greater awareness of these types of injuries,” said study author Philip Veliz. He is an assistant research professor at the University of Michigan School of Nursing, in Ann Arbor.

For the study, his team looked at nearly 53,000 students in grades 8, 10 and 12, and found that self-reported concussions rose between 2016 and 2020. Specifically, in 2016, 19.5% of teens said they’d experienced at least one concussion; by 2020 that number had risen to 24.6%, the findings showed.

Self-reported concussion, however, did not increase across all groups. There was no increase, for instance, among teens who did not participate in sports.

Veliz said these new findings do not contradict studies based on emergency department data that have reported a decline in these types of injuries.

“More adolescents may be seeking care for these injuries, including care from health professionals outside the emergency department who have appropriate diagnosis and management skills,” Veliz explained.

Source: HealthDay
https://consumer.healthday.com/5-5-1-in-4-u-s-teens-have-had-a-concussion-study-2652836351.html