Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Associate Professor Sara Gould, M.D., published “Orthostatic intolerance in post-concussion patients” in the Physician and Sportsmedicine journal.

Orthostatic intolerance (OI) is a constellation of symptoms resulting from blood pressure variations. Patients with OI might experience lightheadedness, fainting, and heart palpitations when they stand quickly after lying down or sitting, due to difficulty regulating their blood pressure.

Gould and researchers noted that orthostatic intolerance following a pediatric concussion is not well understood.

So, authors set out to describe concussion-related OI in adolescence, with particular emphasis on time to recovery and differences from non-concussion-related OI. They also provided treatment guidelines that may be useful for sports medicine practitioners, in managing these patients.

39 pediatric patients were studied over 13 months. Authors found that post-concussive OI differs from other orthostatic intolerance etiologies because it lacks strong female predominance and exhibits shorter recovery times, compared to other etiologies of OI.

“I think orthostatic intolerance is poorly understood,” said Gould. “However, I hope our research provides a starting foundation for further study, and I hope that our recommendations are helpful to other sports medicine providers treating patients with orthostatic intolerance.”

Other authors of the study include UAB trainees in the M.D./Ph.D. program Graham Cochrane and Jarvis Johnson plus Department of Pediatrics Assistant Professor Camden Hebson, M.D., Department of Neurology Associate Professor Mohamed Kazamel, M.D.

To read the entire study and its methods, click here.