On July 26th the Association of Ringside Physicians (ARP), a non-profit and non-government organization of primarily fight doctors, released a consensus statement titled Concussion management in combat sports through the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The statement includes definitions and clarifications over what constitutes a concussion, an assessment of current medical suspensions and return to sport (RTS) protocols in combat sports, and a new set of guidelines that the ARP would like to see instituted to create, what the organization believes, would be a safer environment for combat athletes.
ARP Vice-President Dr. John Neidecker of the Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine and the Orthopaedic Specialists of North Carolina’s Department of Sports Medicine, is the lead author of the statement.