Early Aerobic Exercise for the Treatment of Acute Pediatric Concussions

Sport-related concussion is a common injury that has garnered the attention of the media and general public because of the potential for prolonged acute symptoms and increased risk for long-term impairment. Currently, a growing body of evidence supports the use of various therapies to improve recovery after a concussion. A contemporary approach to managing concussion symptoms is to use aerobic exercise as treatment. To date, several studies on both pediatric and adult patients have established that controlled aerobic exercise is a safe and effective way to rehabilitate patients experiencing delayed recovery after concussion. However, less is known about the utility of an early exercise protocol for optimizing recovery after acute concussion and reducing the risk for persistent postconcussive symptoms, particularly in pediatric populations. Thus, the purpose of our paper was to review and evaluate the available literature on the implementation of aerobic exercise for the treatment of acute pediatric concussion.