Physical And Cognitive Activity In Youth Post-Concussion: Relationship Between Objective And Self-Reported Measures

Statement of Purpose Current clinical guidelines call for a brief period of rest post-concussion, followed by a gradual return to activities. However, studies to date have relied primarily on self-reported measures to identify levels of rest needed to promote concussion recovery.This study assessed the relationship between objectively measured and self-reported physical and cognitive activities (the inverse of rest) in concussed youth for a period of 7 days post-injury. Methods Youth ages 11 to 17 were enrolled within 72 hours following a physician-diagnosed concussion. We monitored participants’ physical and cognitive activities, including activity duration and intensity, for a 7-day period using an Actigraph (to measure physical activity) and a Narrative Clip (to measure cognitive activity). Participants also completed a daily survey that captured data on their physicial and cognitive activities as well as their post-concussive symptoms from enrollment until symptom resolution. Results A total of 83 concussed youth (Mean age=14.2 years ± 1.9 years) were included, with most being males (65.1%), white (72.3%), and injured in a sporting activity (84.3%). The average symptom score at injury was 39.5. Over half (54.2%) of youth experienced symptoms for \u003e2 weeks. We found no significant correlations between objectively measured and self-reported level of physical activity (duration X intensity). There were only weak correlations between objectively measured and self-reported cognitive activities by level of activity (low: r=0.16, p=0.0022; medium: r=0.16, p=0.0111; high: r=0.31, Conclusions Our findings suggest that Actigraphy is a better tool for measuring physical activity post-concussion than self-reported measures. Additional research is needed to validate tools that measure physical and cognitive activity post-concussion. Significance and Contributions This study furthers our knowledge of objective tools for monitoring physical and cognitive activity post-concussion. Findings of this study provide insight on how best to measure physical and cognitive activity post-concussion.