Assessment before athletic
participation should include:

• Brain injury/concussion history
• Symptom evaluation
• Cognitive assessment
• Balance evaluation

The good news: With proper treatment, most will recover within days or weeks - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Baseline Concussion Testing

The baseline concussion test provides a snapshot of a healthy brain before a head injury occurs. Comparing post-injury test results to baseline test results assists our Denver team at NeuraPerformance Brain Center in picking up on subtle cognitive changes in order to properly identify the effects of the head injury. Doing so allows us to make more informed decisions regarding the best course of action for concussion recovery.

Baseline testing is also an important step in raising concussion awareness for athletes, parents, and coaches. The concussion baseline test is used to assess an athlete’s balance and brain function, including learning and memory skills, ability to concentrate, reaction time, and problem solving skills. It includes a scan for concussion symptoms as well as cognitive assessments.

We recommend that athletes of all ages take a baseline test pre-season, prior to risk of injury through training or competition. In the event a head injury occurs, the same test is taken again by the athlete, yielding comparative scores from before and after the injury.

Each head injury is unique, so it’s important to treat concussions on a case-by-case basis. If an individual has a baseline test to use for comparison, his or her post-injury test scores can be used much more effectively than if they were compared with an “average” score of the general population.

Based on research, the CDC recommends athletes repeat their baseline testing annually.

Mobile Baseline Testing
In Denver

NeuraPerformance Brain Center is changing the game when it comes to baseline testing for the diagnosis and treatment of concussions. There is no longer any need for you to visit us in person to receive your baseline testing service. We’ll come to you! 

We are proud to introduce our newest service: the baseline testing mobile lab. We’re very excited about this service as it offers clients across Denver the convenience that is unheard of within the concussion treatment industry. Now, you can schedule your baseline test for a time most convenient for you, or you can even request mobile testing for the entire high school football team that you coach. We’ll park right next to practice!

Baseline Testing For
Youth & Student Athletes

Once athletes reach the collegiate level, the NCAA requires at least one baseline concussion assessment prior to participation for every varsity level athlete, but the physicians at NeuraPerformance can’t help but worry about younger athletes, for whom no such requirement exists. If you’re a parent or a coach, we highly recommend pre-season baseline concussion testing for all of your young athletes. These tests make diagnoses and subsequent concussion treatments much simpler; if a child is hit, all we need to do is perform another test to be compared to the baseline, at which time we can decide whether or not the child’s brain is functioning as it is supposed to be.

Besides the clear benefits to the neurological health of young athletes, baseline testing also relieves much of the pressure put on coaches. Since the Jake Snakenberg Youth Concussion Act was passed in 2004, youth sports coaches are responsible for educating themselves on the signs of a concussion in order to protect young athletes from second impact syndrome, but every concussion is different, and diagnosis is not always straightforward. By investing in baseline testing for your youth sports team, you can deal with concussions on your team with confidence.

What are Dynavision Concussion Baseline Tests?

The Dynavision D2 is a high-tech way to measure performance and track improvement. It is designed for high-performance athletic training, and it’s also a valuable evaluation tool for baseline concussion tests and future testing after a player is suspected of having a concussion. Learn more about the Dynavision D2 and athletic performance here.

Essentially, Dynavision is a light board that contains 64 raised light switches arranged in five rings that are mounted on a wall. The person being concussion tested will stand in front of the wall and touch the switches as they light up. The professional conducting the concussion test will measure the performance and provide instructions, such as asking you to remember a word or number while you are focusing on the light switches.. The device patient responses are recorded and the concussion test measures visual, gross motor, and neurocognitive tasks.

Concussion Diagnosis and Management

As we have said before, the foundation of concussion management is initial testing, or baseline testing. If you are an athletic director, a sports coach, or another organization that responds to concussion, you should have a concussion protocol/policy. If you are a parent of a child participating in athletics, you should ask what policy the organization has in place for diagnosing and managing concussions. All concussion protocols should include a baseline concussion test as a foundation that the rest of the plan is built upon.

We’ve all heard the stories of the person who suffered a hard hit, was dizzy, but returned to the field to make a game saving play. Luckily, more and more people are questioning stories, and making sure that the athlete’s health is the top priority rather than the score of the game. 

The best concussion protocols involve a variety of teammates, coaches, and care providers. There should be a trained healthcare provider familiar with concussion care that acts as the point person in charge of the concussion care team. An athletic trainer should also be available to conduct sideline evaluations and they are responsible for removing the athlete from participation, if necessary. In a school setting, nurses and teachers should monitor the student’s symptoms and make academic adjustments if necessary.

Outside of the organization, brain centers like NeuraPerformance in Denver can provide expert knowledge and advanced technology, like Dynavision and Gyrostim to help aide in concussion recovery.

Diagnosis

It’s important for everyone involved in organizations where there is a risk of concussion to understand the signs and symptoms of concussions. From teammates to parents to coaches to outside supports like NeuraPerformance Brain Center, we’re all responsible for helping build a safer sports environment! 

Symptoms of concussions generally fall into the following four categories:

• Thinking and remembering - difficulty with school, confusion or feeling in a fog
• Physical - headache, blurred vision, nausea, and balance problems
• Emotional - sadness, irritability, increased anxiety
• Sleep - sleeping too much or not enough

If you or someone you know has experienced an injury that may be a concussion, watch out for these signs of concussions and notify a health care professional immediately. The best practice when it comes to concussion treatment is quick diagnosis and concussion treatment before the symptoms get worse.

We don’t want kids to stop playing contact sports, we just want them to do it safely!

We love sports and we fully believe that participating in high-school athletics builds life-long skills. People who play competitive sports learn confidence, leadership, and improved fitness. For many teens, participating in athletics means less missed school days and a higher GPA. Sports also give students positive mentors and social relationships.

With all of the news about concussions and post-concussion syndrome, many parents are hesitant about signing their children up for football or other contact sports. Here at NeuraPerformance Brain Center our goal is to use technology to make contact sports safer. If you’re worried about your child’s brain health, please get in touch with our Denver center and we can schedule baseline testing or make a concussion recovery plan.