Kennebec Region Health Alliance

Highlights from talk with Dr. Dunlap, sports medicine
Department of Pediatrics Meeting, Thursday 4/13/2017

Concussion:

Usually recommend max of 48 hours of rest.
Encourage back to routine, or modified routine as soon as possible. For example, back to school as soon as possible even if just as observer status.
Encourage physical activity (obviously avoiding contact sports) if not making symptoms worse.
The sports medicine team will usually see patients with concussion initially as 30 minute visit, and then follow up weekly. Happy to see any patients with concussion.
For those with prolonged symptoms, especially trouble with nystagmus or near point convergence, vestibular therapy with trained physical therapists is helpful.
At initial visit, reassurance that athlete will recover with time really helps with recovery.
Head imaging is RARELY indicated, for example if Glasgow Coma Scale number is low.

Knees:

Any athlete with limp, effusion of knee, knee pain that is keeping them from sports, or not improving, consider referral to sports medicine.
Most patients with limp and/or effusion need X-ray
Knee pain often associated with hip muscles/hamstring weakness or alignment problems

Back pain:

Consider prompt referral for athlete with acute back pain, especially is pain with extension

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To promote the provision of efficient and effective healthcare services, Kennebec Region Health Alliance helps develop and disseminates practice guidelines for use by its member practices. Such guidelines are based upon various sources that KRHA believes to be reliable, which may include but is not limited to, guidelines from widely recognized professional societies, boards and colleges such as the American Medical Association (AMA). Practice guidelines are reviewed at least every two years and updated as necessary to reflect changes in medical practice.

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