A study determines how long it takes to recover from a concussion

People who had poor cognitive outcomes were also more likely to have other symptoms such as anxiety and lower life satisfaction.

A concussion is brain damage generated by a blow to the head or violent shaking of the head and body. It can cause transient cognitive symptoms. According to a new study, all who have mild traumatic brain injuries are more likely to have a brain impairment, mental decline, or both one year later than people who have not been injured. 

The study was disseminated in the medical journal 'Neurology,' published by the American Academy of Neurology. 

People who had poor cognitive outcomes were also more likely to have other symptoms such as anxiety and lower life satisfaction.

"Our findings suggest that clinically significant poor cognitive outcomes, defined as cognitive impairment, cognitive decline, also both, one year after a trauma may be more everyday than previously thought," tell study writer Raquel Gardner, MD, of the University of California, San Francisco.   

"They also highlight the importance of better understanding the mechanisms underlying poor cognitive outcome, even after relatively mild brain injuries, to improve recovery therapy." The study included 656 people admitted to trauma center emergency rooms with concussions and 156 healthy people who had not been injured in the head. Their average age was 40 years old.

One year later, researchers discovered that 86 out of 656 people with mild brain injuries, or 14%, had poor cognitive outcomes. Ten percent had only cognitive impairment, two percent had only cognitive decline, and two percent had both. In comparison, eight out of 156 people who did not have concussions, or 5%, had poor cognitive outcomes one year later.