New Blood Test on Par with CT in Confirming Childhood Concussions

Urgent care centers that align themselves with schools and youth athletic programs should take note of a study showing that a blood test was able to confirm concussions in children with 94% accuracy—and to provide critical information on the severity of the concussion. While the reliability of the test was “competitive with CT scan,” it offered key advantages that may appeal to urgent care operators: namely, lower cost and none of the risks inherent to radiation exposure with CT. The test works by measuring the biomarker glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) within six hours of head injury. GFAP levels were relatively low in in children with mild concussions and significantly elevated in those found to have severe concussions. Results of the study are detailed in a paper by Linda Papa and other researchers at Orlando Health, published in Academic Emergency Medicine and based on research funded by the National Institute of Neurologist Disorders and Stroke. (To learn how one urgent care provider expanded his sports physicals program to include concussion testing and prevention, read the JUCM article, Concussion Care Adds Value to an Urgent Care Sports, Camp, and School Physical Program, at https://www.jucm.com/concussion-care-adds-value-to-an-urgent-care-sports-camp-and-school-physical-program/.)