Ten minutes a day at home helps teenagers heal faster after concussion

Concussion advice used to mean dark rooms and total rest. A trial published in JAMA Pediatrics tested the opposite, delivered at home: teenagers recovering from concussion followed a remotely coached aerobic exercise programme — starting with just ten minutes a day of brisk walking or stationary cycling, stopping if symptoms flared — while a comparison group did daily stretching. The exercise group shed their symptoms significantly faster and reported better quality of life at three months; by six months the stretching group had caught up, and the benefit was clearest for teens who started within 90 days of injury. Because the coaching is virtual, the researchers say, specialist concussion care could reach rural teenagers who currently travel hours for it — or go without.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: tech innovation