Citation

Howell DR, Andrew Taylor J, Tan CO, Orr R, Meehan WP. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 2019; 51(4): 647-652.

Affiliation

Departments of Pediatrics and Orthopaedic Surgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1249/MSS.0000000000001829

PMID

30376513

Abstract

Aerobic exercise has received increasing attention in the scientific literature as a component of management for individuals who sustain a concussion. Since exercise training has been reported to reduce symptoms and improve function for those experiencing persistent postconcussion symptoms, it represents a potentially useful and clinically pragmatic rehabilitation technique. However, the specific exercise parameters that best facilitate recovery from concussion remain poorly defined and unclear. This review will provide a brief summary of the current understanding of the role of sub-symptom exercise to improve outcomes after a concussion and will describe the exercise parameters that appear to be important. This latter will take into account the three pillars of exercise dose - frequency, duration, and intensity - to examine what is currently known. In addition, we identify important gaps in our knowledge of exercise as a treatment for those who develop persistent symptoms of concussion.

Language: en