Abandoning a sport you love after concussion: Calling it quits

Currently, there are no evidence-based guidelines for retiring an athlete from his or her sport after concussion.1 Although there are a variety of guidelines regarding concussion management, there is no consensus on the number of concussions that would warrant an athlete to permanently retire.1,2 The decision should be individualized for each athlete, with careful consideration taken if there are structural abnormalities on neuroimaging, multiple lifetime concussions, persistent diminished academic or workplace performance, persistent postconcussive symptoms, prolonged recovery course, and perceived reduced threshold for sustaining recurrent concussions.3 The athlete's age, level of play, severity and number of previous concussions, and comorbid conditions are additional variables that must be weighed in this decision.1