Private physicians say they've also seen more young people with concussions since the Alabama High School Athletic Association mandated that high school athletes can't return to practice or play until being released by a doctor. That's leading to more frequent diagnosis.
"Our sports-related concussion numbers are on the order of three times what they were last year," said James Johnston, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Children's.
Johnston spoke Tuesday at a town hall meeting organized by the Sarah Jane Brain Foundation, a national nonprofit group that works to raise awareness of childhood brain injury. Participants hailed the new regulations as being a good first step in limiting the problem.
But they also said there's much work to be done, including the need to educate athletic coaches and trainers about the dangers, reach out to school nurses who need guidance and teach parents to spot concussions.
Although children almost always heal quickly and fully after these injuries, untreated concussions or repeated trauma can lead to long-term problems with attention, test-taking and other mental skills. U.S. emergency departments treat about 135,000 children ages 5 to 18 with sports-and-recreation-related traumatic brain injuries each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.