Rehabilitation and return to play in concussed athletes: a qualitative multi-case study

Abstract

The Return to Sport protocol (RTS) requires concussed athletes to progress through a symptom-limited 6 Stage process before returning to sport. While this protocol is beneficial for managing the physical symptoms of a concussion, it is limited in considering the psychosocial factors of rehabilitation. Given that psychosocial elements of rehabilitation have been associated with athletes’ readiness to return to sport in musculoskeletal injuries, understanding the psychosocial elements of sports-related concussions (SRC) rehabilitation may be beneficial for understanding athletes’ psychological readiness to return to sport following RTS. This qualitative multiple-case study utilized a combination of timelining and two semi-structured interviews to explore the psychosocial factors of concussion rehabilitation and psychological readiness to return to sport. Five themes were developed from athletes’ shared experiences of concussion rehabilitation and return to sport. These findings provide preliminary evidence of the complex psychosocial factors that influence concussed athletes’ rehabilitation and readiness to return to sport.