Our Mission
Concussions and head injuries have plagued athletes for centuries. However, recent research indicates that concussions can adversely affect short and long-term brain function. More attention is being focused on the prevention and treatment of concussions. One recent study predicted that 1.6 to 3.8 million sports-related concussions occur each year. Concussions have been linked to early-onset dementia, headaches, and other brain function impairments. Post-Concussion Syndrome and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy have affected numerous professional athletes, and have made recent headlines. This has led to the recent rule changes regarding the use of helmet to player contact in the NFL, and had focused the media’s attention to this serious public health issue. The NFL and NHL have had protocols in place for several years, but many high school and college programs lack this support for their athletes. It has been proven that the younger athlete’s brain is not as developed as an adult’s, and is even more susceptible to permanent brain injury as a result of a concussion. These athletes require more timely diagnosis and treatment than the professionals, but due to their lower profile and larger numbers, many concussions are missed or inappropriately treated.
Cleared To Play. Org, Inc. is a 501 (c)(3) registered non-profit organization founded by Sean Lager, M.D.. Its purpose is to raise awareness of concussion prevention and treatment and provide appropriate medical support for local high school and college athletes. Through his Orthopedic Surgery Sports Medicine private practice, Gotham City Orthopedics, LLC, Dr. Lager and his associate, Dr. Orlando V. Gonzalez, work with several local high school and college teams. Both physicians are certified with ImPactTM, a proprietary neurocognitive testing company, which measures 8 different types of brain function. Using this test in the pre-season establishes each player’s baseline brain function. After a concussion has been diagnosed, the player retakes this ImPactTM test to determine how his/her brain function may have been affected, and is used as part of the criteria for assessing when the player has returned to pre-injury status and can return to play. Gotham City Orthopedics, LLC is a certified ImPactTM testing center and provides these testing services at their Jersey City, Englewood, and Clifton, NJ locations.
Many New Jersey high schools do not have ImPactTM testing available for their athletes, yet they sponsor sports programs in which concussions often occur. These schools either don’t have the funding for ImPactTM testing, or the facilities to administer the tests. Currently, no major health insurance company in New Jersey will pay for the pre-season baseline test. We are committed to raising funds through Cleared To Play so that these athletes have the same access to this state of the art technology as the professionals. On December 7, 2010, Governor Chris Christie signed the New Jersey Comprehensive Concussion Safety Bill which requires each school district in the state to develop a policy for prevention and treatment of sports-related head injuries for their athletes. Each athlete suspected of sustaining a concussion will be removed from play and must be cleared by a medical professional prior to returning to sports. The New Jersey Department of Education’s “Model Policy and Guidance for Prevention and Treatment of Sports-Related Concussions and Head Injuries” recommends pre-season baseline testing, but allocates no money for this program. We are working with local school athletic programs to implement these protocols and promote concussion prevention and treatment awareness. We have instituted treatment guidelines that oversee an athlete’s care from an injury on the field, to the local Emergency Room, follow up evaluations in our offices, post-concussion ImPactTM testing, 5 staged rehabilitation protocols, and final clearance by one of our certified physicians for return to play. Since August 2011, we have provided concussion prevention and treatment educational training and pre-season baseline ImPactTM tests for over 3,500 athletes. We have “cleared to play” over fifty post-concussion patients and are being sought after by tri-state area parents and coaches to provide baseline testing and treatment for their student athletes. Please assist our efforts with your sponsorship.
