Foothill High School is piloting Sway Concussion this football season, giving its Athletic Trainer additional objective information when evaluating and managing suspected concussions.
That's one reason Foothill High School in Palo Cedro, California, has added Sway Concussion to the tools available to Athletic Trainer Allison Hingstelo this football season.
Hingstelo recently spoke with local media about the challenge of evaluating high school athletes who may be eager to return to the field.
“We all know high schoolers; they want to fake every single injury or not that they’re hurt so they can get back on the field,” Hingstelo said.
Sway allows athletes to complete a series of balance and cognitive assessments using a compatible mobile device. Hingstelo described athletes completing six to eight different tests, including assessments involving balance and reaction time.
The results can give an Athletic Trainer another source of objective information to consider alongside symptoms, clinical evaluation and the school's established concussion protocol.
That's an important distinction.
Hingstelo emphasized that Sway isn't replacing California's required CIF concussion protocol. Instead, it provides another tool Athletic Trainers can use as they evaluate an athlete and make decisions throughout concussion recovery.
Dr. Rhonda Watkins, a professor of clinical medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, also emphasized the importance of Athletic Trainers in concussion care.
“I think coaches should rely on Athletic Trainers if they have that,” Watkins said. “They tend to know their players well.”
Foothill's decision to add Sway also highlights a challenge Athletic Trainers know well: concussion assessment can't depend solely on an athlete saying how they feel.
Symptoms remain an important part of concussion assessment, but tools that measure areas such as balance and cognitive function can provide additional information to help Athletic Trainers evaluate recovery.
For Hingstelo, that means another piece of information she can consider as she works through Foothill's concussion protocol and helps determine when an athlete may be ready to safely progress toward returning to the field.
And that's exactly where technology such as Sway Concussion can fit — not replacing the Athletic Trainer's clinical judgment, but giving them more information to inform it.
Check out the full news story!
Sway Concussion provides objective balance and cognitive assessment data that Athletic Trainers can consider alongside reported symptoms, clinical examination and other components of their concussion assessment process.
No. As Foothill Athletic Trainer Allison Hingstelo explained, the school is using Sway Concussion as an additional tool alongside its required CIF concussion protocol. Concussion management and return-to-play decisions should follow applicable clinical protocols, laws and organizational policies.
Athletes may not always recognize or report every symptom following a potential concussion. Objective assessments can provide Athletic Trainers with additional information about areas such as balance and cognitive performance to consider as part of a broader clinical evaluation.
Sway Concussion can provide data that Athletic Trainers and other healthcare professionals may use alongside symptoms, clinical findings and established return-to-play protocols to follow an athlete's recovery. It is not intended to serve as the sole basis for a concussion diagnosis or return-to-play decision.