The Effectiveness of Physical Therapy Interventions for Athletes Post-Concussion: A Systematic Review.
Kylie Art, Courtney Ridenour, Stephanie Durbin and 2 others
PMID 36793559WHAT IT FOUND
Physical therapy interventions for athletes post-concussion showed improved recovery times and reduced symptoms in half of the trials.
The other four trials showed no significant difference between groups. No adverse effects were reported with early physical activity.
Key findings
01Four of the eight included randomized controlled trials demonstrated significant improvements in treatment groups compared to control groups.
02The remaining four trials showed improvements over time but did not reach statistical significance between groups.
03None of the studies reported significant adverse effects from early physical activity or physical therapy interventions.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Three of the eight included studies had a high risk of bias according to the PEDro scale. All included studies had small sample sizes, ranging from 15 to 118 participants, which reduces statistical power. One study included only male participants, limiting generalizability to female athletes. The review mixed acute and chronic concussion cases, making it difficult to determine if timing of intervention affects outcomes. Multimodal interventions made it hard to separate the contribution of specific components like aerobic exercise from cervical or vestibular therapy.
Declared interests
The authors indicate no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume all physical therapy interventions are equally effective or that early activity is universally beneficial. The review included heterogeneous interventions and populations, with half the trials showing no significant difference between groups. Individualize treatment based on symptoms and impairment.