Previous studies on sport-related concussion (SRC) knowledge and its management among athletes have been limited in Japan. The purposes of this study were to determine the level of SRC knowledge and management preparations among collegiate contact sport athletes in Japan and to examine their association. The participants were divided into three groups: 1) contact sport athletes, 2) non-contact sport athletes, and 3) culture club members or nonparticipants. Knowledge was assessed by the percentage of correct answers to ten general SRC knowledge questions. The management preparations were examined by the proportion of athletes to three SRC management questions. More than 80% of the contact sport athletes correctly answered most of the general SRC knowledge questions; however, only 30% of them correctly answered a question about long-term complications from repeated SRC, and this rate was lower than that of the participants who were culture club members or nonparticipants. More than 80% of the contact sport athletes had plans to stop playing and not to return to play with symptoms of SRC; however, 60% of them adopted gradual return-to-play protocols for SRC. Contact sport athletes who had correct knowledge about not returning to competition with SRC were less likely to return to play while being suspected as having SRC. Although the participants were relatively knowledgeable about SRC and had favorable management after sustaining SRC, improving the awareness of long-term complications of SRC and the return-to-play protocol is necessary for the safety of contact sport athletes.

View full abstract

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the actual conditions and the issue of the recognition of teachers towards school risks. Therefore, I aimed to clarify the actual condition of recognition by giving questionnaires to the school administrators and teachers. First, teachers' recognition of the frequency of disaster occurrences and the extent of their seriousness was revealed. Specifically, teachers recognized that the seriousness of a disaster at the time of occurrence is more important than the frequency. Furthermore, regarding the type of risk, a group ranked high in both frequency and degree of seriousness. Moreover, the frequency of disasters outside the group was ranked as low. However, it turned out the recognition of the degree of seriousness varied by type of school. Second, I clarified teachers' recognition of the necessary capacity to respond to crises. Although the necessity for a strong capacity was high, respondents answered that this had not been sufficiently achieved. The biggest issue was teachers' capacity to respond appropriately at the time of a disaster.

View full abstract

[in Japanese]

View full abstract

[in Japanese]

View full abstract

[in Japanese]

View full abstract