STANDARDIZED ASSESSMENT OF CONCUSSION (SAC) - ON-SITE MENTAL STATUS EVALUATION OF THE ATHLETE

Objective: This study investigated the clinical utility of the Standar dized Assessment of Concussion (SAC) in detecting concussion in athlet es. Method: Athletic trainers administered the SAC to 568 nonconcussed high school and college football players prior to the 1995 and 1996 f ootball seasons. Thirty-three of these players experienced concussion and were tested immediately following injury; 28 of the 33 underwent a dditional follow-up testing 48 hours after the injury. Results: Concus sed players scored significantly below nonconcussed controls on all SA C measures and significantly below their own pre-injury baseline perfo rmance. Follow-up testing documented return to preinjury baseline. Con clusion: These findings support the SAC's effectiveness in detecting c oncussion and tracking recovery in order to determine a player's fitne ss to return to play.