Harry Carson To Lead Concussion Lecture In Red Bank Thursday

RED BANK, NJ — This Thursday, athletic directors and football coaches from a number of schools in the Shore Conference and throughout Monmouth County will attend a lecture in Red Bank on concussion management. The lecture, which will be held at Two River Theater, will be moderated by former New York Giant Harry Carson. Carson, a beloved star on the Giants during the 1980s, was diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome in 1990. He sustained between 12 to 18 concussions during his playing days, according to this in-depth interview with Carson. He said he never would have played football if he knew about the concussion risks.

The lecture is for coaching staff only; it is not open to the public. There are new guidelines for concussion management and the event will educate area athletic directors and coaches about the changes, treatment, and prevention of concussions.

Coaches and athletic directors from the following schools will attend the lecture, which will be held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. in the private library at the theater:

• Marlboro High School
• Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School
• Raritan High School (Hazlet)
• Neptune High School
• Old Bridge High School
• Long Branch
• Manalapan High School
• Wall Township High School
• Monmouth University
• Brookdale College

“When I played, nobody really knew the residual effects of concussions and what it could lead to – dementia, Alzheimers and ALS – so we were, in my era, in my generation, basically flying in the dark,” Carson has said.

Dr. Kristine Keane the concussion director at Hackensack Meridian Health, and Dr. Stephanie Reynolds, the chairman of Emergency Medicine at Riverview Medical Center, will also speak, as will Dr. Jeremy Norma, a physical therapist at Hackensack Meridian Rehabilitation Southern Ocean Medical Center.

Topics covered tonight will include:

• Understand diagnosis and treatment of the concussed child/athlete
• Identify the need for emergency care and understand emergency procedures
• Understand current research trends and clinical applications of cognitive rest, return to play and return to academia protocols
• Recognize and be able to apply treatment options for various musculoskeletal comorbid injuries/symptoms associated with a concussive injury.