River Forest Neurosurgeon Tackles Sports Concussion Locally, Nationally and Internationally

River Forest neurosurgeon Gail Rosseau, MD, is well known for her longtime commitment to sports-related head injury prevention. As the mother of a varsity high school football team captain, Dr. Rosseau has a very personal interest in preventing sports-related concussion. As a neurosurgeon, head injury prevention is a clinical area of expertise and pursuit that she has been deeply committed to for many years. Dr. Rosseau has long served on the board of the Think First National Injury Prevention Foundation, and is the only female and physician serving on the USA Football Board of Directors.

During the month of October alone, Dr. Rosseau is tackling sports-related concussion on multiple fronts – from serving as guest editor of a comprehensive concussion supplement published in the esteemed Neurosurgery, the Official Journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons to presentations throughout Chicagoland. Current Concepts in Sports Concussion, which was published ahead of print on September 22, is a comprehensive resource of cutting-edge research, providing in-depth insight on all aspects of sports concussion. The 16 articles, including the introduction by Dr. Rosseau, cover prevention, treatment and potential long-term effects.

Locally, Dr. Rosseau will be speaking on this topic at Evanston Township High School, the Union League Club of Chicago, and as keynote speaker at the annual educational conference of the Brain Injury Association of Illinois. Further afield, she will be speaking on the brain and sports concussions during Family Weekend at Phillips Exeter Academy, where her son captains the varsity football team.

“The neurosurgeon’s commitment to treating traumatic brain injury is fundamental to the specialty, providing a safe haven for all patients regardless of the severity of the injury or the time of day or night that they arrive in the emergency department. Neurosurgeons are committed to advancing the clinical understanding and efficacy of all aspects of sports concussion through advocacy and education, patient care, on-field interventions, prevention, and groundbreaking research,” Dr. Rosseau said.

Select statistics from Current Concepts in Sports Concussion

• An estimated 1.68 to 3.8 million sports-related concussions occur in the U.S. each year, and there are likely a significant number that go unreported.
• Helmet-to-helmet blows in American football lead to 61% of impacts causing concussion.
• An estimated 63,000 mild TBIs occur annually in American high school athletes requiring at least temporary removal from play for clinical evaluation, with 63% in football.
• An estimated 56% of college athletes surveyed indicated no knowledge about the potential consequences of mild head injury.
• A 54-year retrospective analysis showed that brain injuries accounted for 69% of football-related deaths and that 86% of these were attributed to subdural hematomas.
• Based on the estimated 1.6 to 3.8 million sports-related mTBI incurred annually in the U.S., authorssuggest that prolonged recovery may be experienced by 320,000 to 760,000 of these athletes each year.
• The incidence of postconcussion syndrome has been reported to vary from 5% to 58% of concussed individuals; the most commonly reported incidence is 10% to 15%.

“While there are still great strides to be made in the field, this supplement offers encouragement that considerable progress has been made on many fronts regarding the clinical understanding of sports concussion and prevention. It is our hope that one day, professional and amateur athletes, as well as millions of average people pursuing recreational activities they love, can do it safely each and every day, without the fear of head injury,” Dr. Rosseau concluded.