Most major impact sports are becoming more keenly aware of the importance of preventing excessive head injury and the potential long-term effects of concussion. Although the emphasis is stressed with concussion care protocols at the elite college and professional levels, there seems to be a large gap in the younger athletes in town sports, junior and high schools.
This is particularly common with coordination between the various medical personnel needed and the varied symptoms concussions can cause. Concussion therapy can consist of several areas of concern. In the realm of physical therapy, it can be broken down into 4 major categories: Neck/Cervical spine, vestibular (inner ear sensory system that creates the sense of balance and spatial orientation for the purpose of coordinating movement), visual system and physical exertional stress testing.
In addition to the physical exam and screening for these areas, the adjunct use of ImPact computerized testing will help assess potential cognitive issues such as memory recall, reaction time, and coordinated eye movement. ImPact testing is an FDA approved tool for comparing a person’s neurocognitive state before a concussion occurs. The actual coordination of services can be challenging at best.
The majority of clinicians can ascertain that a patient has suffered a concussion, but not all are trained to treat it. Referring to specialists can often lead to excessive wait time and long periods of gapped time before patient receives effective treatment. Also, sometimes multiple systems can be involved, which would benefit from concomitant treatment at one site versus having to see multiple providers fragmentally. Finally, not every clinician utilizes the ImPact testing and interpretation piece – which can add a layer of assessment to adjunct what physical exams can not do entirely.
Our program is designed to take on these challenges. First, every patient treated for concussion will be assigned a concussion clinician coordinator, which will assist in the logistics of obtaining the needed treatment services, as well as act as a liaison to ensure timely follow-ups with a patient’s physicians – this will greatly reduce unnecessary lead times.
We also offer baseline and post injury ImPact testing on site. Your concussion coordinator will also be responsible to help assist pre and post testing interpretation with our medical director and/or the patients’ individual physician (if that doctor is ImPact certified). Having a pre test for comparison greatly assists with establishing the baseline of neurocognitive function before the injury occurred and will allow us to help progress your care quickly and effectively.
All five of our locations have therapists that are ImPact certified and can offer effective diagnosis and treatment encompassing cervical, vestibular and visual systems. After evaluation, we will determine the extent of dysfunction and formulate the individual treatment regime.
As for the final piece, through our robust fitness centers, we will also perform quantitative physical exertion testing with sports related activities. This is an important piece that measures your vitals through exertional testing, particularly important for athletes looking to return to play safely and timely.
With two decades of serving the Greater New Haven Community, Amity PT and our staff takes great pride in being your trust source of care. To set up your evaluation CLICK HERE or call (203) 626-5330 to discuss your treatment.
Michael Dow, MSPT, ITPT is a licensed physical therapist and founder of Amity Physical Therapy. He has extensive training in orthopedics, pediatrics, sports consultation, manual therapy, vestibular dysfunction, and golf performance training. Michael graduated from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT with a Master’s in Physical Therapy.
In 2000, he was recognized by the US Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, DC for the development of his functional exercise class designed for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. In addition to being the clinical director of Amity Physical Therapy, Michael continues to work with local high school and college athletes to reach their sports goals.
Michael is certified by the Titleist Performance Institute as a medical professional. This certification allows him to use the same distinguished evaluation and screening techniques that PGA players use to enhance performance and prevent golf-related injury. Golfers of all ages and skill levels benefit from his Golf performance program. He has also received a certificate of completion from the Institute of Advanced Musculoskeletal Treatment in Dry Needling.