Background and Hypothesis: Concussions are mild traumatic brain injuries that present with symptoms that usually resolve on their own, and signs can manifest in minutes to hours after injury. The geriatric population is at risk of experiencing concussions for various reasons and this population may not be aware of what signs to look for. This study sought out to assess this population’s knowledge and awareness of concussion symptoms. We hypothesized that the geriatric population would have less overall knowledge of signs of concussions compared to other age groups.
Methods: This study was a cross-sectional survey of patients from the ages of 65 to 89 in the Rowan-SOM Family Medicine office regardless of gender or ethnicity. Participants with a history of dementia were excluded. The survey evaluated how the signs of concussions could be identified. Subjects were be asked to participate in person during their office visit at Rowan-SOM in Stratford.
Results: Responses were received from 20 participants who fit inclusion criteria. The results demonstrated 90% heard of the term concussion, 60% heard of what steps to take if they suspect having a concussion, and 40% knew of someone who was diagnosed with a concussion. Participants were then asked a series of yes/no style questions to determine their knowledge of the signs of concussions. The aggregate data from the survey suggested that participants correctly identified symptoms of concussion 72% of the time. Based on results from similar studies of different age groups, the geriatric population at Rowan-SOM appeared less likely to correctly identify the signs of concussions (p= 0.0175).
Conclusion: This study demonstrates that elderly patients are not as knowledgeable about the signs of concussions when compared to other age groups surveyed. This is a reminder for healthcare providers to share adequate education about concussions with the geriatric population to increase their awareness and safety. Further studies can be done to show level of knowledge on a larger scale or with different populations.
Acknowledgement of Research Study Sponsors and IRB: We are thankful to Rowan Family Medicine for their contribution to this study and the Institutional Review Board of Rowan University for approving this study.
