COLUMBIA, Mo. (KFVS) – New research is revealing to scientists that a patient who shakes his head back and forth rapidly after a traumatic impact probably has a concussion.

Researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine, General Brigham’s Mass and the Concussion Legacy Foundation conducted the study that involved screening nearly 350 high school and college athletes.

Research has shown a 93% predictive rate when it comes to a teenage football player who displayed a head tremor following a traumatic event. For other sports, the price was slightly lower but remained final.

Scientists believe this new sign of concussion could help identify up to 33% of undiagnosed concussions.

“After a blow to the head, individuals sometimes quickly shake their heads back and forth,” a press release about the study states. “Although it has been depicted in movies, television, and even cartoons for decades, this movement has never been studied, named, or appeared on anyone’s list of potential concussion signs. no medical or sports organization.”

Dr. Ross Zafonte, a brain injury specialist and executive associate dean of the MU School of Medicine, said it’s likely that involuntary head shaking is a secondary symptom compared to the other symptoms that accompany a concussion.

“It could be visual,” Zafonte said. “They might try to stabilize their visual field. It could be that they’re just trying to clear their sensorium or figure out where I am and what’s going on, and that’s a naturalistic thing for humans to do.

The study’s authors say its findings should be disseminated to medical boards and oversight entities so that team doctors can begin monitoring this phenomenon immediately as research continues.

“Diagnosing concussions is difficult because many of the symptoms we look for develop over time as you observe the athlete on the sidelines,” said Dr. BJ Schultz, a sports medicine specialist at Compass Health Network. “Having that first head movement is nice to perk up your ears, but it requires someone to see the event when it’s happening.”

Zafonte said spectator sports provide a convenient setting for viewing. As parents, faculty, staff and other players become more aware of “head shaking” and other signs, it could help them detect signs of head injuries earlier in their development and speed up the treatment.

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