Supplementary Neuromuscular Rehabilitation During Acute Concussion Recovery

Approximately 1.6 to 3.8 million mild traumatic brain injuries, or concussions, occuryearly in the United States. Although most individuals progress throughreturn‐to‐activity (RTA) using symptom‐guided aerobic and functional activity, currentprotocols do not directly target neuromuscular deficits linked to persistent movementalterations after concussion. These deficits include altered gait, reduced movementefficiency, and biomechanical changes that persist beyond symptom resolution and increasesubsequent risk of musculoskeletal injury. This creates a critical clinical gap: patientsare cleared using symptom‐tolerance protocols, while concussion‐related neuromuscularimpairments remain untreated during the period when recovery behaviors are established.The proposed project addresses this gap by testing a low‐cost, equipment‐freeneuromuscular rehabilitation strategy added to standard RTA during acute concussionrecovery. The intervention applies the six principles of clinical Pilates, concentration,control, centering, precision, flow, and breathing, through ten therapeutic movementsdesigned to improve posture, flexibility, balance, strength, muscle control, bodyawareness, and movement confidence.