@article{ref1,
title="Reconsidering return-to-play times: a broader perspective on concussion recovery",
journal="Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine",
year="2018",
author="D'Lauro, Christopher and Johnson, Brian R. and McGinty, Gerald and Allred, C. Dain and Campbell, Darren E. and Jackson, Jonathan C.",
volume="6",
number="3",
pages="e2325967118760854-e2325967118760854",
abstract="BACKGROUND: Return-to-play protocols describe stepwise, graduated recoveries for safe return from concussion; however, studies that comprehensively track return-to-play time are expensive to administer and heavily sampled from elite male contact-sport athletes. <br><br>PURPOSE: To retrospectively assess probable recovery time for collegiate patients to return to play after concussion, especially for understudied populations, such as women and nonelite athletes. STUDY DESIGN: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. <br><br>METHODS: Medical staff at a military academy logged a total of 512 concussion medical records over 38 months. Of these, 414 records included complete return-to-play protocols with return-to-play time, sex, athletic status, cause, and other data. <br><br>RESULTS: Overall mean return to play was 29.4 days. Sex and athletic status both affected return-to-play time. Men showed significantly shorter return to play than women, taking 24.7 days (SEM, 1.5 days) versus 35.5 days (SEM, 2.7 days) (<i>P</i><.001). Intercollegiate athletes also reported quicker return-to-play times than nonintercollegiate athletes: 25.4 days (SEM, 2.6 days) versus 34.7 days (SEM, 1.6 days) (<i>P</i>=.002). These variables did not significantly interact. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Mean recovery time across all groups (29.4 days) showed considerably longer return to play than the most commonly cited concussion recovery time window (7-10 days) for collegiate athletes. Understudied groups, such as women and nonelite athletes, demonstrated notably longer recovery times. The diversity of this sample population was associated with longer return-to-play times; it is unclear how other population-specific factors may have contributed. These inclusive return-to-play windows may indicate longer recovery times outside the population of elite athletes.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="2325-9671",
doi="10.1177/2325967118760854",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2325967118760854"
}