LOS ANGELES—The King–Devick test may be a more objective and accurate method for the
sideline evaluation of sports-related concussion
than the Standardized Concussion Assessment Tool
3 (SCAT3), which is the current standard, according to research reported at the 56th Annual Scientific
Meeting of the American Headache Society. Several
studies of the King–Devick test are “showing that it
has a number of advantages over the SCAT3” and
soon may become the new standard, said Bert B.
Vargas, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Mayo
Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona.
In a recent study of collegiate football players, the
King–Devick test successfully identified approximately
80% of participants with concussion. In contrast, the
Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC), a com-
ponent of SCAT3, identified slightly more than half of
participants with concussion. Administering the King–
Devick and SAC tests identified approximately 90% of
concussions, and administering the SCAT3 and the King–
Devick tests identified every athlete with concussion, said
Dr. Vargas, citing a study recently published in Neurol-
ogy Clinical Practice. No single test will be the “one and
only go-to tool,” he added. Rather, a combination of
measures may be the best way to identify players who
have had concussion.
SCAT3 and Its Weaknesses
SCAT3 includes the Graded Symptom Checklist, a series of 22 symptoms that a player grades on a scale of 0
to 6, the SAC, which screens for cognitive deficits, and
A Better Test for Evaluating
Sports Concussion on the Sideline?
Serving the Neurology Community Since 1993
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