Robert G. Graw, Jr., M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Maryland-based Righttime Medical Care, presented his lecture, An Integrated Community Model for the Education, Evaluation and Treatment: An Update, on mild traumatic brain injuries (MTBI) at the Brain Injury Association of Maryland's annual conference on March 20.
Addressing an audience of medical professionals, educators, specialists and patients who have an interest in developing community standards for the diagnosis and treatment of concussions, Dr. Graw presented an update on the evolution of HeadFirst Concussion Care, nationally-recognized community model. The program is based on educational and athletic protocols that were established in collaboration with leading professionals.
A Board-certified pediatrician, Dr. Graw became involved with mTBI when his orthopedic surgeon son discussed with him the increasing number of sports-related injuries, especially head injuries.
HeadFirst began as Dr. Graw's brainchild in 2010 and was ahead of Maryland's youth concussion law (SB 771 and HB 858) that took effect in July 2011. To launch HeadFirst, Dr. Graw invited more than two dozen professionals to participate in a pioneering task force to bring awareness to sports-related concussions and to develop protocols.
Named the Concussion Consortium, the team continues to meet monthly and includes orthopedists, emergency physicians, pediatricians, neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuropsychologists, neuro-optometrists, athletic coaches, trainers, physical and rehabilitative therapists, and school administrators and nurses from Anne Arundel, Montgomery, Howard and Baltimore Counties in Maryland.
The Consortium serves as a forum for sharing expertise, highlighting resources for concussion treatment, and helps families navigate the complex road to recovery from concussion. Members discuss new scientific developments and research, as well as to explore new return-to-learn and –activity protocols and educational outreach opportunities for student-athletes, their families and coaches.
In his presentation, Dr. Graw emphasized that, in order to minimize the long-term damage of concussions and encourage a satisfactory recovery time, a comprehensive return to play, school and work protocol must take place within a framework of collaborative care comprised of providers, specialists, coaches/athletic trainers, schools and recreational leagues, as well as the athletes and their families. This includes adhering to comprehensive guidelines that ensure the law is followed.
As a result of performing thousands of free ImPACT® concussion baseline tests and caring for injured patients, HeadFirst Concussion Care has compiled an informative database that is being used to enhance the guidelines of medical care for MTBI. Among findings made by HeadFirst are:
- school-aged children sustain the largest number of concussions;
- the recovery rate of females is substantially longer than their male counterparts; and
- non-sports-related brain injuries comprise the majority of concussion diagnoses, which include falls, motor vehicle accidents, bullying and domestic abuse.
Occupational cognitive demands may help stave off memory and thinking problems later in life