Town Hall Discussion on Sports and Concussion

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 27, 2010) — A panel of experts from the University of Kentucky will discuss sports-related concussion and its consequences at a town hall meeting sponsored by the Bluegrass Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience.  The meeting will take place from 7-9 p.m. Monday, May 3, in the auditorium of the UK William T. Young Library.  The meeting is open to the general public.  Parents of contact-sport athletes, coaches and athletic trainers are especially encouraged to attend. 

"It's important to realize that a concussion is not just a bump on the head," says Scott C. Livingston, an athletic trainer and sports physical therapist who specializes in sports concussion evaluation and management. "It's actually a mild form of traumatic brain injury. "Unfortunately, most concussions go unrecognized and unreported. Athletes want to continue to play and may not recognize the seriousness of their injury."

Livingston, an assistant professor in the UK College of Health Sciences, will participate in Monday's discussion, speaking about on‐field diagnosis of concussion.  Jonathan Lifshitz, assistant professor in UK's Spinal Cord & Brain Injury Research Center (SCoBIRC), will discuss the basic science of concussion. Dr. James A. Jagger, assistant professor of surgery and head team physician for UK Athletics, will discuss medical management of sports‐related concussions.  The discussion will be moderated by SCoBIRC Director Edward D. Hall. 

Visitor parking is available in front of the William T. Young Library, at the corner of Woodland Avenue and Hilltop Avenue.  Refreshments will be served prior to the meeting, starting at 6:30 p.m.  For more information, please contact Melinda Wilson at (859) 323‐9618 or e-mail melinda.wilson@uky.edu.