Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  We do know that radiation can potentially increase your risk of harm of future malignancy, and in the growing brain, potentially even have effects on IQ. The good news is that in Canada, as compared to our neighbours to the south, because of the type of medicine that's practised and less risk of litigation and less defensive medicine, we are doing very well with reducing the number of unnecessary CT scans.

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  That's such an important question because, again, as you talked about earlier, you don't want to do harm.

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  I'm an expert in pediatrics, so I'll focus my comments on pediatrics, because I'm not as familiar with the adult literature. We recently published a study in JAMA Pediatrics which looked at the natural progression of recovery from concussion. Again, we're using our cohort of children who had their injury within a few hours.

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  Thank you for the question. With regard to how we can better measure, I think it's so important that we have an opportunity to better link all of our distinct provinces and territories. People will ask me how common concussions are in Canada, and I have to say, “Well, they're this common in Ontario, this common in Alberta and this common in this province.”

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  Thank you again, especially today, on Let's Talk Day; it's so important to recognize the mental health implications of concussion. They are there, and it is something that we've continued to study to better understand. I think we have to be very careful about how we use the word “cause”.

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  My area of expertise is in pediatrics. I can't really comment too much on how the adult patients are managed. I can say, though, as a scientist, that we still have so much to understand with regard to the actual science. That's how I'll answer your question: through the science.

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  That's an excellent question. Thank you very much. It's one that all of us who are diagnosticians.... That's what I do in emergency medicine. I come in with someone who doesn't yet have a label, who says “I have this”, and we have to come up with that. It's an issue that we face every day on all of these diseases we see, including concussion.

Subcommittee on Sports-Related Concussions in Canada committee  Thank you. As the previous speakers did, I want to thank the committee and the subcommittee for giving attention to such an important topic. First, I want to say that I am a recipient of competitive grants from numerous organizations, including the CIHR, Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation, Ontario Brain Institute, Brain Canada, Physicians' Services Incorporated, and the NFL, but I don't believe any of these poses a conflict of interest.