What is concussion? The science of the injury and how to recognise it - Fisic Conference Presentation 2015 (14 mins)

This content consists of a 14 minute video presentation professionally produced and presented at the Fisic Conference 2015.

Dr Robert Cantu is a founder of the Centre for the study of Traumatic Encephalopathy at Boston University Medical School where he is also a Clinical Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery.

He currently serves as Senior Advisor to the NFL Head, Neck and Spine Committee; Section Co-Chair Mackey-White National Football League Players Association Health and Safety Committee; Founder and Medical Director Sports Legacy Institute; Member World Rugby Concussion Advisory Group; Adjunct Professor Exercise and Sport Science and Medical Director National Centre for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research. Amongst other posts Dr Cantu is also Senior Advisor at Brain Injury Centre and Adjunct Staff, and Vice President Chair Scientific Advisory Committee National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE).

Dr Cantu also consults with numerous NFL, NHL and NBA teams. He is also a professional consultant to the USA Rugby Medical & Risk Committee sub-committee for Sports Concussion. He has published over 400 scientific articles including 33 books on Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Sports Medicine. He received his BA degree from the University of California Berkley. Jointly, in medical school and graduate school, he received his MA degree in endocrinology in 1962, and in 1963, his MD from the University of California Medical School in San Francisco. Following a surgical internship at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City in 1963-1964, he began a neurosurgery residency at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and simultaneous position of research fellow in physiology at Harvard Medical School. Upon completion of his residency in 1968, Dr Cantu joined the neurosurgery staff at MGH, where his practice and laboratory were located, while assuming the position of Acting Assistant Director of Neurosurgery and Director of Paediatric Neurosurgery at Boston City Hospital.

Should sports consider neuroimaging in the assessment of concussion?

This article discusses the current evidence for the short- and long-term effects of concussion in sport and how occurrences of concussion should be managed. The article also considers the potential role of medical imaging in terms of assessing both acute and chronic head injuries. Greater awareness of when medical imaging could be used will aid the practitioner's understanding of its potential contribution while still maintaining the fundamental importance of clinical judgement.