Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38980666›Full record

Trial reportClinical journal of sport medicine : official journal of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine2025

Adolescents With a High Burden of New-Onset Mood Symptoms After Sport-Related Concussion Benefit From Prescribed Aerobic Exercise, a Secondary Analysis of 2 Randomized Controlled Trials.

Matthew C Castellana, George J Burnett, Andrew Gasper, Muhammad S Z Nazir, John J Leddy, Christina L Master, Rebekah C Mannix, William P Meehan, Barry S Willer, Mohammad N Haider

Abstract readMulticenter StudyRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Clinical journal of sport medicine : official journal of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Matthew C CastellanaDepartment of Psychiatry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.
George J BurnettDepartment of Psychiatry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.
Andrew GasperBuffalo Psychiatric Center, Buffalo, New York.
Muhammad S Z NazirUniversity Concussion Management Clinic and Research Center, UBMD Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, Buffalo, New York.
John J LeddyUBMD Department of Orthopaedics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.
Christina L MasterDepartments of Surgery and Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Rebekah C MannixDepartment of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; and.
William P MeehanDepartment of Pediatrics and Orthopedics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
Barry S WillerDepartment of Psychiatry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.
Mohammad N HaiderUBMD Department of Orthopaedics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.

Funding

Physiological mechanisms of a biomarker of recovery from concussionR01NS094444 · NINDS · STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BUFFALO · PI LEDDY, JOHN JOSEPH · 2016 to 2020
$1.8M
NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS094444
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveApproximately 20% of students with sport-related concussion (SRC) report new symptoms of anxiety and depression which may be associated with delayed recovery and increased risk for developing a mood disorder. Early prescribed aerobic exercise facilitates recovery in athletes with concussion-related exercise intolerance. We studied the effect of aerobic exercise treatment on new mood symptoms early after SRC.

designExploratory secondary analysis of 2 randomized controlled trials (RCT).

settingSports medicine clinics associated with UB (Buffalo, NY), CHOP (Philadelphia, PA), and Boston Children's Hospital (Boston, MA).

participantsMale and female adolescents (aged 13-18 years) diagnosed with SRC (2-10 days since injury).

interventionsParticipants were randomized to individualized targeted heart rate aerobic exercise (n = 102) or to a placebo intervention designed to mimic relative rest (n = 96).

main outcome measuresIncidence of Persisting Post-Concussive Symptoms (PPCS, symptoms ≥28 days).

resultsFirst RCT recruited from 2016 to 2018 and the second from 2018 to 2020. Of 198 adolescents, 156 (79%) reported a low burden (mean 1.2 ± 1.65/24) while 42 (21%) reported a high burden (mean 9.74 ± 3.70/24) of emotional symptoms before randomization. Intervention hazard ratio for developing PPCS for low burden was 0.767 (95% CI, 0.546-1.079; P = 0.128; β = 0.085) and for high burden was 0.290 (95% CI, 0.123-0.683; P = 0.005; β = 0.732).

conclusionsHigh burden of mood symptoms early after injury increases risk for PPCS, but the sports medicine model of providing early targeted aerobic exercise treatment reduces it. Nonsports medicine clinicians who treat patients with a high burden of new mood symptoms after concussion should consider prescribing aerobic exercise treatment to reduce the risk of PPCS and a mood disorder.

Indexed as

Athletic InjuriesBrain ConcussionExercisePost-Concussion SyndromeAdolescentAnxietyDepressionExercise TherapyFemaleHeart RateHumansMale

Identifiers

PMID38980666
PMCPMC11693491

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.