Citation

Wojtowicz M, Iverson GL, Silverberg ND, Mannix R, Zafonte RD, Maxwell B, Berkner PD. J. Neurotrauma 2016; 34(2): 322-327.

Affiliation

Colby College, Health Services, Waterville, Maine, United States ; pberkner@colby.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Mary Ann Liebert Publishers)

DOI

10.1089/neu.2016.4412

PMID

27349296

Abstract

Relying on self-reported concussion injury history is common in both clinical care and research. However, young athletes may not provide consistent medical information. To date, little is known about the reliability of self-reported concussion history in high school students. This study examined whether student athletes reported their lifetime history of concussions consistently over time. Self-reported concussion history was examined in 4,792 student athletes (ages 13-18) from Maine who completed a preseason health survey on two occasions (median retest interval=23.7 months, SD=7.3, IQR=12.4-24.5). Consistency of self-reported concussion history was determined by differences in the number of concussions reported during the second survey. Inconsistent concussion history was defined primarily by a decrease in the number of lifetime concussions reported at the second testing compared to the first testing. The majority of the sample (80.3%) reported no change in the number of concussions between the two baseline assessments. A minority (15.9%; n=763) reported more concussions during the second assessment. Only 3.8% (n=181) of student athletes provided inconsistent concussion histories, defined as fewer concussions at the second assessment. Boys provided inconsistent concussion histories a little more frequently compared to girls (i.e., 5.3% and 2.0%, respectively, p<.001). Similarly, athletes with self-reported ADHD provided inconsistent concussion histories somewhat more frequently compared to those without ADHD (i.e., 7.8% and 3.5%, respectively, p<.001). Of the athletes with inconsistent concussion histories, greater degree of inconsistency was associated with a greater number of concussions initially reported at baseline (rs=.54, p <.001). Only a small proportion of student athletes provided inconsistent concussion histories. Male gender, ADHD, and greater number of baseline concussions were significantly associated with inconsistency in reporting. Overall, these findings suggest that student athletes are quite consistent when reporting their concussion history when surveyed twice during high school.

Language: en