ImPACT© (Immediate Post-concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) was developed by sports concussion researcher Mark Lovell, Ph.D. who is now director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Sports Medicine Concussion Program.
It is the first and most widely used computerized evaluation system to objectively assess the effects and severity of concussion and injury recover progress and help determine when it is safe for the athlete to return to contact sports following a concussion.
With ImPACT, team athletic trainers and physicians can efficiently collect and store pre-season baseline data on the athletes’ neurocognitive functional state by having them take a 20-minute computerized test that measures brain processing, speed, memory and visual motor skills. This baseline session takes place prior to the beginning of the athletic season before any physical contact is sustained. If an athlete experiences a concussion during the season, he or she is re-tested and the baseline neuropsychological data is compared to post-concussion data to help determine the athlete’s post-concussion neurocognitive status and when it is safe for the player to return to active sports.
Today, ImPACT is used by Major League Baseball and all MLB umpires; numerous teams in the National Football League, National Hockey League and National Basketball Association; more than 300 colleges and universities and more than 1,000 high schools nationwide; the USA Olympic Training Center; USA Hockey and the United States Women’s Olympic Ice Hockey team; the U.S. Ski Team; USA Rugby; USA Lacrosse; Major League Soccer; Championship Auto Racing Teams and the Indianapolis Racing League as well as numerous other national and international professional athletic organizations and more than 250 sports medicine programs and clinics.
For more information visit the ImPACT web site at http://www.impacttest.com.
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