Sleep duration may impact concussion test results: study

Chicago – Lack of sleep the night before concussion testing may skew the results, according to a study from Vanderbilt University.

Researchers reviewed the neurocognitive scores of 3,686 high school and college athletes who did not have a concussion. Using self-reports of sleep duration, researchers found athletes who slept less than seven hours the night before scored poorly in reaction time, verbal memory and visual memory scores and reported more baseline concussion symptoms, states a press release from the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine.

Researchers suggested that health care providers take sleep duration into account when performing a test to get a baseline for concussion comparisons.

The study was presented July 20 at the annual meeting of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine in Chicago.