American Medical Society for Sports Medicine
For Immediate Release Apr 17, 2015

Presentation Discusses Head Injuries and the Legal Ramifications in Return to Play During AMSSM Annual Meeting

Hollywood, FL – April 17th, 2015– Richard Adler, JD, the attorney that represented then 13-year old Zackery Lystedt and his parents in their legal case that resulted in precedent-setting outcome as well as Washington State’s first-in-the-nation legislation to prevent preventable brain injuries in youth athletes, will give two presentations about head injury and the legal ramifications in return to play today at the 24th Annual Meeting of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine at the Diplomat Resort and Spa in Hollywood, FL.

The Zackery Lystedt law was used as the model for similar laws in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia. Mr. Adler’s first presentation,starting at 7:00 a.m., is titled Legal Ramifications of Sports Concussion: Past, Present and Future Considerations. He will review the core legal-sports medicine principles on education, removal from play and medical clearance that will include a lively discussion on hypothetical cases to better understand the mix of legal and clinical parameters of return to play decisions.

Mr. Adler’s second presentation of the day titled, Preventing Preventable Brain Injuries for Youth Athletes:Return to Play Protocol, Legislation, Legal Landscapes, will begin at 11:55 a.m. While his first presentation laid the foundation for discussing legal parameters, this presentation will discuss why the law was needed, how it came to be and what legal standards are now established in different states across the US.

The 2015 conference, with more than 1,500 sports medicine physicians attending from throughout the United States and around the world, explores current decisions, controversies and best practices related to return-to-play decision making that defines the clinical practice of sports medicine.

About the AMSSM Annual Meeting: The conference features lectures and research addressing the most challenging topics in sports medicine today including issues surrounding FIFA & soccer injuries, ACL injury prevention, cardiovascular disease, degenerative joint disease, the power of physical activity in maintaining a healthy population, baseball injuries, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, sports ultrasound, pediatric sports medicine, groin pain/athletic pubalgia and provocative issues dealing with return-to-play decision making.

About the AMSSM: AMSSM is a multi-disciplinary organization of 2,700+ sports medicine physicians dedicated to education, research, advocacy and the care of athletes of all ages. The majority of AMSSM members are primary care physicians with fellowship training and added qualification in sports medicine who then combine their practice of sports medicine with their primary specialty. AMSSM includes members who specialize solely in non-surgical sports medicine and serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS and NHL, as well as with Olympic teams. By nature of their training and experience, sports medicine physicians are ideally suited to provide comprehensive medical care for athletes, sports teams or active individuals who are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. www.amssm.org