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SALT LAKE CITY — A recent study suggests teachers and parents go easy on teens who have incurred a concussion, at least as far as homework goes.
The medical journal Pediatrics published the study on Jan. 5. Among other findings, researchers discovered that when mental exertion was limited during the first 100 days post concussion, recovery was more successful and speedy, according to NBC News.
Dr. William Meehan is the director of the Sports Concussion Clinic at Boston Children’s Hospital and was co-author on the study. He said he recommends children limit mental strain for at least the first three to four days following a concussion.
“They should do as much as they can without exacerbating their symptoms,” Meecham told NBC.
According to the Center for Disease Control, almost half of the concussions treated in emergency rooms each year are sustained by children under the age of 14. In every age group, according to the CDC, males outnumber females in numbers of reported concussions.
355 patients, ages 8 to 23, participated in the study. The subjects were being treated for previous concussion-related injuries. During a series of visits, each participant was asked to rate his or her cognitive activity as it differed from the previous visit.
According to CBSNews, the study was conducted based on five different responses to the inquiry about "cognitive rest" following a concussion. Participants could answer if they participated in “complete cognitive rest” (no school activity or intensive mental exertion was performed), “minimal cognitive activity” (less than 20 minutes of intense brain activity a day), “moderate cognitive activity” (less than 10 minutes of reading or less than one hour of video games a day) “significant cognitive activity” (reading slightly less than normal for school), or “complete cognitive activity” (normal brain exertion).
The research found that students took much longer, up to 100 days, to recover completely from a concussion if they maintained normal school performance. Students who were able to limit strain on their brains recovered typically within 20 to 50 days.
Research conducted previously on animal subjects lead to similar conclusions; a rested brain heals faster from a concussion than an active one.
Prior to the new information release in the study, the American Academy of Pediatrics came out with new guidelines for teens and children recovering from concussions in March of 2013.
“Management of the athlete with a concussion revolves around hastening recovery while avoiding activities and situations that may slow recovery stressing adequate time for both physical and cognitive recovery,” It states on the AAP’s website. “Thus cognitive and physical rests are the mainstay of management.”
