Sports Head Injuries and Concussions

Catalog description

Sport-related concussion (SRC) in professional, college, and youth athletes has received more attention in the media over the last decade. Although national attention to this topic began 20 years ago with the publication of Omalu et al.’s landmark 2005 paper (“Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in a National Football League Player” in the journal Neurosurgery), clinical neuropsychologists have been leading clinical and scientific advancements in the area of SRC for the past 30 years. The field of clinical neuropsychology has been involved in the development, implementation, and evaluation of protocols for managing SRC and determining when an athlete has recovered and is ready to return to play. Over the past decade, research on SRC has exploded with hundreds of studies relating to the neurobiology of the injury, biomechanics, epidemiology, risk factors for slow recovery or poor outcome, and methods for improving assessment, treatment, and rehabilitation services for athletes. The breadth and depth of these research efforts likely will result in better health outcomes for future athletes. The primary goal of this Tulane InterDisciplinary Experience Seminar is to introduce first year students to the study of SRC. Students will be expected to read, analyze, present, and discuss peer-reviewed empirical journal articles on this topic.