Concussion: Diagnosis vs. Profiling – What Really Matters?

By Associate Professor James McLoughlin, Chief Academic Officer at Your Brain Health

Step 1: Confirming the Concussion

Think of this as saying, “Yep, you’ve had a knock.” It’s an important first step — but it’s only the beginning.

Imagine a car that’s been in a minor crash. The first thing you do is check for visible damage. Confirming a concussion is similar. The brain — along with the neck and brainstem — has taken a hit, and there’s been a temporary change in function.

In the immediate aftermath, the top priority is determining whether emergency medical care is needed. We look for red flags that require an immediate medical response. Following this we monitor physical, cognitive, and emotional symptoms over the next few days. This process should be overseen by a responsible adult — not your mates while out at the pub.

To help guide decision making in this acute phase, the Concussion Recognition Tool 6 (CRT6) is the go-to resource. It’s simple, safe, and designed for use by coaches, trainers, parents, and anyone involved in player care. It helps recognise red flags and core symptoms and provides helpful advice for what to do next.

Yes, emerging technologies like blood biomarkers, saliva tests, and wearable sensors are exciting — but they need to add value. That means improving decisions and guiding actions. These tools must be co-designed with those on the front lines: players, physios, coaches, and carers. Plenty of apps and other portable measures of specific brain functions are now hitting the market. However, if it doesn’t support and enhance decision-making, it’s not helping.

Step 2: Profiling Brain Health

This is where concussion care gets truly clever.

Knowing someone has had a concussion is one thing. But understanding how it’s affecting them is another. Is balance off? Vision blurry? Thinking slow? Mood unstable? Sleep disrupted? A bit of everything?

Now we’re popping the hood to see what’s really going on.

Multimodal brain profiling goes beyond diagnosis. It assesses the systems most often disrupted by concussion, including:

  • Symptoms (e.g. headache, dizziness, nausea)
  • Mental health
  • Sleep quality
  • Vestibular system function
  • Cervical spine function
  • Oculomotor function
  • Balance and coordination
  • Cognitive performance
  • Autonomic nervous system regulation

To get the most accurate picture, we also integrate:

  • Individual brain health history
  • Previous baseline brain health screening data

Without evaluating all of these domains, you risk missing key information. But by using comprehensive brain health profiling, we can track recovery, guide referrals to the right professionals, and tailor rehabilitation to the individual’s needs.

Excitingly, repeatable baseline screens now allow us to track these domains over time. This opens the door to a more preventative and personalised approach to brain health — targeting modifiable risk factors long before issues become chronic. And with nearly half of all dementia cases considered preventable, this kind of proactive strategy is a genuine game-changer.

Why It Matters

When we know which systems are affected, we can deliver targeted support — whether it’s neck physiotherapy, balance training, vision rehab, heart rate-guided aerobic exercise, or structured rest strategies.

We’re not just managing the concussion — we’re tuning the whole system. That includes identifying pre-existing conditions (e.g. migraine, anxiety, ADHD) that might influence how we approach rehabilitation and recovery.

This leads to:

  • Faster, safer return to activity
  • Reduced risk of prolonged symptoms
  • Better outcomes across the board

So, the next time you hear about a “new tool” to diagnose concussion, ask: Does it help improve care? Does it inform recovery planning?

Diagnosis is step one. But multimodal brain health profiling continues to evolve — and it’s here to stay!