Coaches of youth sports teams and the parents of children who participate in sports are invited to attend “Concussions in Youth Sports: What Every Parent and Coach Needs to Know,” a free program to be held from 7-9 p.m. July 18 at the Robert J. Collins Arena on the campus of Brookdale Community College, Newman Springs Road (Route 520), Lincroft.
The program is sponsored by the Athletic Department at Brookdale Community College, the Concussion Rx Care Program at db Orthopedic Physical Therapy, and the Sports Medicine Center at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune. Experts from each of the three sponsors will be featured speakers at the event.
Program registration is required online at www.concussionrxcare.com or by calling 732-747-1262. The first 100 program registrants will receive comprehensive concussion baseline testing for their children at a reduced cost.
In addition, representatives of all recreation programs, school programs and groups who attend the program will receive a reduced group rate for concussion baseline testing, according to a press release.
“A concussion is a brain injury and should never be passed off as just a ‘bump on the head,’ ” said Dr. David Bertone, physical therapist, board-certified orthopedic clinical specialist and president of db Orthopedic Physical Therapy, Lincroft.
“We have been hearing more and more about how concussions are not only sidelining our children for a few weeks, but are also causing severe, long-lasting health effects and potential life-threatening injuries,” he said. “That is why we felt it was so important to come together as a community and make sure everyone, parents and coaches alike, is completely educated about concussion prevention, identification and treatment.”
According to research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 38 million children between the ages of 5 and 18 play organized sports in the United States. Of those children, one in 10 will suffer a sports- or recreation-related concussion each year.
In addition to Bertone, the featured speakers for the program include Stephen Rice, M.D., board-certified pediatrician and pediatric sports medicine director at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Sports Medicine Center; and James Anderson, head athletic trainer at Brookdale Community College.
Rice will discuss the signs and symptoms of a concussion, and the potentially fatal consequences of second-impact syndrome. Anderson will review how coaches can conduct proper sideline assessments of potential concussions.
Bertone will explain the concussion recovery and rehabilitation process. In addition, he will discuss the often confusing “return to play” methods, and how comprehensive concussion baseline testing with a balance component is the only way to determine a safe time to return to play following a concussion.