Balance problems or dizziness
Being bothered by light or noise
Confusion
Double or blurry vision
Difficulty remembering or paying attention
Feeling sluggish, hazy, foggy, or groggy
Feeling irritable, more emotional, or “down”
Headaches
Nausea or vomiting
Slowed reaction time
Sleep problems
Loss of consciousness
173,285 concussions occur amongst children and adolescents between birth to 19 years.
Children and teens are more likely to get a concussion and take longer to recover than adults.
Typical sports-related concussions resolve rapidly, with complete symptom resolution in 10 days or less.
Some atypical concussions leave an individual with prolonged symptoms.
Dr. Elster wrote up a report in 2003 of a 23-year-old profession ice skater that experienced unbelievable results after chiropractic care. After sustaining a concussion when she hit her head against the ice, the skater experienced unrelenting headaches for over 12 years. Using pain medications to help cope with the pain, she gave up hope that her life could ever be pain free. Thankfully, she visited a chiropractor and after 3 months, all of her symptoms were gone. (7)
In 2011, a report was published of a 16-year-old male athlete with post-concussion neck pain and daily headaches. After just two adjustments, the young man experienced “significant relief,” and complete resolution of his symptoms just 5 visits later. To his delight, he was back on the field afterwards and returned to play full games … symptom free! (8)
Beyond headaches, these types of cases can be found with post-concussion patients with positional vertigo as well. (9)
Dr. Sweat reported that a 76-year-old woman with post-concussion seizures that lasted 10 years presented into his office with visual disturbances, fluctuating blood pressure, decreased hearing, and abnormal walking patterns. Unfortunately, her medical doctors couldn’t help and, after suffering for many years, finally decided to visit an upper cervical Atlas Orthogonal chiropractor. These DC’s are some of many who specialize in correcting vertebral misalignments (subluxations) of the top bone in the spine (the “atlas”). (This is just one of the many approaches chiropractors can take to manage concussion patients.) According to the study, “Immediately after the first adjustment the patient experienced a more normal gait and resolution of her altered walking pattern. The patient was managed for a duration of two months and reported complete recovery from seizures, altered walking pattern, blood pressure stability and improved hearing.” (10)
The next year, Dr. Sweat reported a similar story, but with a 75-year old woman who had a history of concussions and experienced a wide variety of symptoms including: fatigue, gait ataxia (staggered walking), strabismus (crossed-eye syndrome), and migraines. After not too long, “The patient’s symptoms were quickly and painlessly reduced and/or resolved.” (11)