Symptom Recovery in Children Aged 5 to 12 Years With Sport-Related and Non-Sport-Related Concussion

There is limited research on clinical features and symptom recovery from sport-related concussion (SRC) and non-SRC in younger children.

To investigate the trajectory of symptom recovery in children aged 5 to 7 years and 8 to 12 years with SRC and non-SRC at 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks postinjury.

This secondary analysis of a prospective multicenter cohort study (Predicting and Preventing Postconcussive Problems in Pediatrics) included participants aged 5 to 12 years with acute concussion who presented to 9 pediatric emergency departments within the Pediatric Emergency Research Canada network between August 2013 and June 2015. Analyses were conducted from September 2023 to May 2024.

Participants had a concussion consistent with the Zurich consensus diagnostic criteria and 85% completeness of the Post-Concussion Symptom Inventory (PCSI) at each time point.

The primary outcome was symptom change, defined as current minus preinjury ratings 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks postinjury, measured using the PCSI. Symptoms were self-rated for children aged 8 to 12 years and child- and parent-rated for children aged 5 to 7 years. Mixed-effect models were conducted using total PCSI score adjusting for random effects; fixed-effect indicators included injury setting (SRC and non-SRC), time, injury setting × time, and other variables associated with recovery.

A total of 1747 children, including 513 aged 5 to 7 years (mean [SD] age, 6.57 [0.85] years; 320 male [62.4%]) and 1234 aged 8 to 12 years (mean [SD] age, 10.68 [1.40] years; 806 male [65.3%]) were recruited, of whom 477 aged 5 to 7 years and 1157 aged 8 to 12 years were included in the analysis. Of those included in the analysis, 207 aged 5 to 7 years (43.4%; mean [SD] age, 6.68 [0.84] years; 142 male [68.6%]) and 790 aged 8 to 12 years (67.2%; mean [SD] age, 10.77 [1.40] years; 547 male [69.2%]) sustained an SRC. No significant differences in recovery curves across time postinjury were found between those with SRC and non-SRC (5-7 years: β = -0.09; 95% CI, -1.10 to 0.92; 8-12 years: β = 0.11; 95%CI, -1.50 to 1.70).

In this cohort study of children aged 5 to 12 years with an acute SRC or non-SRC, symptom recovery trajectories over time were similar in both groups. This finding suggests similar management protocols can be used for sport and nonsport mechanisms of injury (excluding assault and motor vehicle crash) in the younger population.