title: Diagnostic terminology is not associated with contact-sport players' expectations of outcome from mild traumatic brain injury.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the influence of the diagnostic terms 'concussion' and 'mild traumatic brain injury' (mTBI) on contact-sport players' injury perceptions and expected symptoms from a sport-related mTBI. It was hypothesized that contact-sport players would hold more negative injury perceptions and expect greater symptom disturbance from a sport-related injury that was diagnosed as an 'mTBI' compared to 'concussion' or an undiagnosed injury.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and twenty-two contact-sport players were randomly allocated to one of three conditions in which they read a sport-related mTBI vignette that varied only according to whether the person depicted in the vignette was diagnosed with concussion (n = 40), mTBI (n = 41) or received no diagnosis (control condition; n = 41). After reading the vignette, participants rated their injury perceptions (perceived undesirability, chronicity and consequences) and expectations of post-concussion syndrome (PCS) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms 6 months post-injury.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no significant differences in contact-sport players' injury perceptions or symptom expectations from a sport-related mTBI when it was diagnosed as an mTBI, concussion or when no diagnosis was given.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Diagnostic terminology does not appear to have a potent influence on symptom expectation and injury perceptions in contact-sport players.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Neuropsychology Research Group, School of Psychology and Counselling and.
authors.forename: Shannon L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Edmed
authors.forename: Karen A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Sullivan
mesh_terms: D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D001315:Australia; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception; D013177:Sports / Q000523:psychology; D009626:Terminology as Topic; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Concussion; outcome; post-concussion symptoms; sport