Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 12, 2025
Development and Implementation of a Multi-Disciplinary Technology Enhanced Care Pathway for Youth and Adults with Concussion
Published on: January 20, 2019
Thirty-Second Single-Leg Stance Identifies Impaired Postural Control in Children After Concussion: A Preliminary
Insights
Standing on one foot for 30 seconds effectively identifies postural deficits in youth after concussion. This simple test aids in assessing recovery and return-to-activity readiness in young athletes.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Sports Medicine
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Concussion assessment requires evaluating subtle motor deficits.
- The Revised Physical and Neurological Examination for Subtle Signs (PANESS) gaits and stations tasks assess postural control.
- The specific utility of individual PANESS tasks for concussion detection in youth is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if specific PANESS tasks can identify postural impairments in youth following concussion.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of individual static and dynamic postural control tasks in concussion assessment.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study was conducted in an academic research laboratory.
- Sixty youth (ages 10-17) were divided into three groups: symptomatic concussion, clinically recovered concussion, and healthy controls.
- The PANESS gaits and stations subscale, including 6 dynamic and 3 static tasks, was administered.
Main Results:
- A significant group difference was found for the standing on one foot task (30-second duration).
- Both symptomatic and clinically recovered youth demonstrated significant postural deficits on the single-leg stance compared to controls.
- No other specific task showed significant group differences.
Conclusions:
- Longer-duration single-leg stance tasks are sensitive to residual postural deficits after concussion in youth.
- These findings suggest that the single-leg stance task can be a valuable tool for concussion management.
- Incorporating single-leg balance assessments into rehabilitation protocols may improve outcomes for concussed youth.
Context:
Objective and expedient assessments of standing postural control incorporating static and dynamic tasks are necessary for identifying subtle motor deficits and clearing children to return to high-risk activities after concussion. The Revised Physical and Neurological Examination for Subtle Signs (PANESS) gaits and stations tasks evaluate both static and dynamic aspects of postural control. While the PANESS gaits and stations subscale is sensitive to concussion in youth, the benefit of each specific task for this purpose is unknown.
Purpose:
This study evaluated whether specific PANESS tasks identify postural impairments after youth concussion.
Design:
Cross-sectional study.
Setting:
Academicallyaffiliated research laboratory.
Participants:
Sixty youth, ages 10-17 years, comprised 3 groups: (1) youth symptomatic from concussion (4-14 d postinjury [n = 18]), (2) clinically-recovered youth (27-122 d postinjury [n = 15]), and (3) age- and gender-matched never-concussed controls (n = 27).
Main Outcome Measure:
PANESS gaits and stations tasks (6 dynamic and 3 static) at the time of the initial research visit.
Results:
Kruskal-Wallis statistic identified a significant main effect of group on standing on one foot (a 30-s task). Both symptomatic and clinically-recovered youth showed deficits on standing on one foot relative to controls.
Conclusions:
Single-leg tasks of longer duration may maximize the ability to detect residual postural deficits after concussion and can be readily incorporated in targeted sport rehabilitation protocols.
