Activity Restrictions as Part of the Discharge Management for Children with a Traumatic Head Injury

This article describes a proactive management strategy that is currently part of the discharge protocol for children seeking care for a head injury (HI) at a pediatric and adolescent trauma center. The strategy consists of setting activity restrictions for children hospitalized and those seen in the emergency department after a HI that may or not have been sports related. It was developed based on extensive clinical experience with families of children with a HI and existing guidelines for returning athletes to sports. Possible merits and pitfalls of the strategy are discussed.