Date Approved

6-10-2020

Embargo Period

6-11-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.S. Athletic Training

Department

Health and Exercise Science

College

College of Science & Mathematics

Advisor

Mann, Douglas

Committee Member 1

Pletcher, Erin

Committee Member 2

Vaughn, Nicole

Subject(s)

Brain--Concussion

Disciplines

Medicine and Health Sciences | Sports Sciences

Abstract

Concussion recovery has been a very relevant topic in the medical field recently. The impact that a concussion has on the patient post-injury has been a topic of debate. What has not been included in many of these studies has been whether or not certain factors in a medical history of patients under the age of 24 can predispose them to a longer concussion recovery. Medical factors such as depression, anxiety and migraines can result in different areas of the developing brain being compromised such as the hippocampus, anterior cingulate cortex, prefrontal cortex, striatum, and amygdala. A longer recovery duration could be expected due to an injury occurring to an already compromised brain. The purpose of this study is to determine if preexisting depression, anxiety or migraines play a role in recovery duration from concussion sustained as a result of a traumatic injury in the 13 to 24 age group. A retrospective chart review was performed using 170 medical charts from patients of Cooper University Hospital from the date range of 1/01/2010 to 11/19/19. It was found that there was no interaction between gender and the effect of preexisting conditions on concussion recovery. It was also found that patients with a history of anxiety or migraines experienced a significantly longer recovery than those who did not. Depression was found to have no effect on the length of recovery. The findings from this study can be used to create a plan of care for patients of all medical backgrounds.

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