Six steps on the road to recovery

WORLD RUGBY, formerly known as the International Rugby Board, have drafted the following guidelines:

What is concussion? A traumatic brain injury resulting in a disturbance of brain function. Common symptoms include headache, dizziness, memory disturbance or balance problems. Loss of consciousness, being knocked out, occurs in less than 10 per cent of concussions. What action do you take if you suspect concussion? The athlete should be immediately removed from play. Once safely removed from play, the injured player must not be returned to activity that day and until they are assessed. Concussion has been diagnosed, what next?

A six-day graduated return to play programme (GRTP):

1 Rest for 24 hours — complete body and brain rest.

2 Light aerobic exercise to increase heart rate. Light jogging for 10-15 minutes, swimming or stationary cycling at low to moderate intensity. No resistance training.

3 Sport- specific exercise to add movement. Running drills, no head impact activities.

4 Non- contact training drills to test co-ordination and cognitive load. Training and passing drills. May start progressive resistance training.

5 Full contact practice so that functional skills can be assessed by coaching staff. Normal training.

6 Player can return to play.