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Through evidence-based recommendations, the Guideline fills an information gap around persistent concussion symptoms and their management.

OTTAWA – September 12, 2023 – To improve knowledge and inform clinical practice, experts at The Ottawa Hospital created the Living Concussion Guidelines to ensure health-care professionals have the tools they need to help adults living with concussions and prolonged symptoms.

With evidence-based and best-practice recommendations, the Guideline is a central hub that health-care professionals can access to ensure they have the most up-to-date information to diagnose and manage treatment for this patient population.

“Concussions often happen quickly and abruptly and are frequently unrecognized by the injured person themselves or those around them,” said Dr. Shawn Marshall, Medical Director of the Acquired Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program at The Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation Centre. “Each patient experiences a concussion differently. These guidelines will help health-care providers navigate their patients through recovery and help them manage their symptoms and expectations.”

In addition to presenting information in a user-friendly way, the guidelines also fill an information gap around persistent concussion symptoms and their management.

“Through my own online research, and discussion with others who have suffered concussions, I realized that most websites tend to focus on the initial stages of a concussion,” said Natalia Rybczynski, a patient who suffered a concussion in 2011. “There was very little information out there for patients regarding what to expect with persisting symptoms, which was frustrating. Now we have more information that validates what we are going through, with strategies and tools for tracking and managing our symptoms right at our fingertips.”

The Guideline is a ‘living guideline’ and continues to be updated with the best available evidence. It is supported by the Ontario Ministry of Health, The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, and the University of Ottawa Brain & Mind Research Institute.

Those interested in getting more information can now sign up for email updates on the Concussion Ontario website.

Media Contact: 

Rebecca Abelson 

rabelson@toh.ca 

343-576-0259 

The Ottawa Hospital

The Ottawa Hospital (TOH) is one of Canada’s top learning and research hospitals where we are guided by our vision to provide the world-class and compassionate care we would all want for our loved ones.

Our multi-campus hospital, affiliated with the University of Ottawa, is home to the Regional Trauma Centre and Cancer Centre, and to discoveries that are adopted globally.   

Backed by generous support from the community, we are focused on reshaping the future of health care to improve the health of our diverse population of patients from Eastern Ontario, Western Quebec, and Nunavut.   

For more information about The Ottawa Hospital, visit OttawaHospital.on.ca.