Advanced Psychological Assessment, P.C.
Sports concussion has become an increasingly important news topic for young athletes,particularly in light of the detrimental effect that such an injury can have on cognitive, emotional, and academic functioning. It is estimated that between 1.4 and 3.6 million sports and recreation-related concussions occur each year, with the majority occurring in high school athletes.
As a neuropsychologist, I work closely with young athletes and those responsible for them, including medical doctors, parents, coaches, athletic trainers, and educators, helping them to understand the impact of the concussion on the child or adolescent and aiding in making safe return-to-play decisions and resumption of academic activities.
As a Credentialed ImPACT Consultant, I use the ImPACT test (see www.impacttest.com) to assess each student athletes preseason baseline level of cognitive abilities and emotional well-being. When a concussion is suspected, post-injury assessments are completed at regular intervals to determine the extent of recovery and the student athletes ability to return to prior activity levels.
Proper management of concussion is the best form of prevention of serious injury.
What is ImPACT?
ImPACT is a sophisticated, research-based computer test developed to help clinicians evaluate an athlete’s recovery following concussion. The program begins with a 20-minute test battery administered in the preseason for a baseline, and includes puzzles and tasks that measure a variety of factors. When a concussion is suspected, a follow-up test is administered to see if the results have changed from the baseline. This comparison helps to diagnose and manage the concussion. Follow-up tests can be administered over days or weeks so you can continue to track the injury.
The ImPACT program evaluates and documents multiple aspects of neurocognitive functioning, including memory, attention span, brain processing speed, reaction time, and post-concussive symptoms. The user-friendly injury documentation system enables you to track the injury from the field and through the recovery process.
Why use Neuropsychological Testing?
ImPACT and other neuropsychological tests can answer difficult questions about an athlete's readiness to return to play, protecting them from the serious consequences of returning too soon. Traditional neurological and radiologic procedures such as CT and MRI are not as useful in identifying the effects of concussion. As a result, doctors often rely on subjective observations or a patient's self-reporting of symptoms to diagnose and track a concussion. This is where neuropsychological testing helps.
Using Neuropsychological testing for baseline and post-injury assessments can help you objectively evaluate the concussed athlete's post-injury condition and recovery to prevent the cumulative effects of concussion. And in the event that baseline testing is not possible, ImPACT has a normative database of thousands of non-injured athletes, which can also be used for effective comparison.
Dr. Rozenblatt is a pediatric neuropsychologist and NYS licensed clinical psychologist with office locations in Smithtown and New York City. For the past 7 years, he has been working with children, adolescents and adults with various neurological, emotional, and academic difficulties, conducting neuropsychological evaluations and providing treatment services designed to help them function more effectively.
Advanced Psychological Assessment, P.C., under Dr. Rozenblatt, is the only Credentialed ImPACT Consultant center in New York City and Long Island and only one of four such places in New York State.
ImPACT offers concussion management services at more than 1,000 high schools, 300 colleges, 250 sports medicine centers, and for professional teams throughout the world.
