TABLE 4.
Comparisons of Concussion Symptom Prevalence, Symptom Resolution Time, Return-to-Play Time, and Symptom Counts Between New and Recurrent SRCs Among High School Athletes in 20 Sports, 2013/14-2017/18 Academic Years
| History | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Symptom prevalence, % (95% CI) | Recurrent | New | P valuea |
| Amnesia | 11.6 (9.3,13.8) | 11.5 (10.8,12.2) | .95 |
| Confusion/disorientation | 36.6 (33.3,40.0) | 37.2 (36.2,38.2) | .74 |
| Difficulty concentrating | 54.1 (50.6,57.6) | 56.2 (55.2,57.3) | .25 |
| Dizziness/unsteadiness | 73.8 (70.8,76.9) | 73.9 (72.9,74.8) | .99 |
| Drowsiness | 30.9 (27.7,34.2) | 32.9 (31.9,33.9) | .26 |
| Foggy | 18.9 (16.1,21.6) | 19.2 (18.4,20.1) | .80 |
| Headache | 95.4 (93.9,96.8) | 94.5 (94.0,94.9) | .29 |
| Hyperexcitability | 1.9 (0.9,2.8) | 2.2 (1.8,2.5) | .63 |
| Irritability | 14.5 (12.0,16.9) | 13.2 (12.5,13.9) | .31 |
| Light sensitivity | 53.3 (49.9,56.8) | 52.6 (51.5,53.6) | .68 |
| Loss of consciousness | 2.3 (1.2,3.3) | 2.5 (2.2,2.8) | .66 |
| Nausea | 29.8 (26.6,33.0) | 28.1 (27.2,29.1) | .31 |
| Noise sensitivity | 36.9 (33.5,40.2) | 34.6 (33.6,35.6) | .19 |
| Tinnitus | 6.2 (4.5,7.8) | 6.4 (5.9,7.0) | .76 |
| Other | 9.3 (7.3,11.3) | 8.2 (7.6,8.8) | .27 |
| Symptom resolution time, % | |||
| <7 d | 47.4 (44.0,50.9) | 51.6 (50.6,52.7) | .02 |
| >21 d | 12.0 (9.7,14.2) | 5.8 (5.3,6.2) | <.001 |
| Return-to-play time, % | |||
| <7 d | 7.6 (5.7,9.4) | 7.9 (7.3,8.5) | .72 |
| >21 db | 15.9 (13.3,18.4) | 9.4 (8.7,10.0) | <.001 |
| Symptom mean | 4.8 | 4.7 | |
| ±SD | 2.3 | 2.4 | |
| Median | 4.0 | 4.0 | .69 |
| IQR | 3.0-6.0 | 3.0-6.0 | |
| Total (n) | 795 | 8668 | n/a |
aP-values correspond to χ2 tests (or Fisher's exact tests when χ2 assumptions were violated) for comparing symptom prevalences and proportions for symptom resolution time and return-to-play time; and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests comparing symptom counts.
bIncludes SRCs resulting in medical disqualification for the season or career.
Note: Statistical significance was evaluated at the 0.001 level, accounting for the multiple comparisons involved. Also, as clinicians were presented with a subset of options for symptom selection, all reported concussions were retained for analysis even if no associated symptoms were reported.