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DOUBT, Sit OUT When In By HARRY THOMPSON As far as leading concussion experts are concerned, return-to-play guidelines are cut and dried No matter what the sport, when it comes to dealing with concussions, honesty is the best policy, but injured athletes don't always tell the truth. Not when victory is hanging in the balance or there's a big game creeping up on the schedule. Athletes will say, and do, whatever it takes to keep on playing, even if that means putting themselves at risk for greater injury. I 4 Mark Lovell has been on the frontlines of the concussion battle for more than 25 years. His message to athletes, coaches and parents is very simple: when in doubt, sit them out. It could be the difference between life and death. "If you think the athlete has suffered a concussion, they probably have," said Lovell, the founding director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Sports Medicine Concussion Program. Never trust a cheerleader. Or an athlete. While we're at it, parents can't always be counted on to do the right thing when a game or season is on the line. "Athletes often deny symptoms, so you can't believe them because they will say whatever they think you want to hear to get back on the ice." Or the basketball court, practice field or cheering from the sidelines. Over his career of working with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Lovell has stared down NFL linemen and linebackers when delivering the bad news that they would not return to the field of play until their concussion symptoms had cleared up. But even those towering hulks of testosterone could barely match the ferocity of a hockey mom who has been told her son would not be allowed to return to the ice until his symptoms have cleared up. "Sometimes their parents are the hardest to deal with because they don't understand the seriousness of the injury," said Lovell, whose work in the field of concussions earned him the 2010 USA Hockey Excellence in Safety Award. "I have definitely had some situations that can be categorized as being a little uncomfortable." While it may seem rash to pull a star player from a big game because he or she may have suffered a concussion, think of the alternative. A second blow to the head can be serious, since repeated concussions can cause cumulative damage, and the severity of the trauma increases with each incident. It's not that any parent wants to put a son or daughter in danger, Lovell said. It's just that they may not understand the long-term health issues far outweigh the short-term disappointment of missing a game, a week or even a season. Education is the key. That's why the medical and hockey communities came together in mid-October at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., for a two-day summit on concussions in ice hockey. The program covered topics ranging from the short and long-term effects of head trauma on the brain to concussion prevention techniques to reducing aggressive behavior in youth hockey. In the end, the group created a series of action plans in the hope of curtailing the risk DIGITAL EDITION HELMET BUYER'S GUIDE USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM