Welsh rugby's medical chief says concussion is "number one issue" in the sport

Welsh rugby's medical chief believes concussion is the "number one issue" the sport needs to address.

There have been several high-profile cases of concussion of late - with England full-back Mike Brown knocked unconscious during the Six Nations clash with Italy and Wales and Northampton wing George North currently on a rest period having been knocked out three times since the start of that competition.

Wales full-back Leigh Halfpenny, Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton and England international Brown and Geoff Parling are other big-name players to have suffered 'concussive episodes' this term - and Welsh Rugby Union national medical manager Prav Mathema is urging governing bodies to react accordingly.

What we have found in the incident against England was a gap in our management plan, which we immediately dealt with.

"Concussion is incredibly serious, and the number one thing in our sport which needs our attention of all the governing bodies," said Mathema, who was speaking at the WRU National Centre of Excellence on Tuesday.

"If somebody is concussed, or we suspect they are concussed, there is no doubt they are off the pitch. That is unequivocal.

"People who go off the field for head injury assessment have to go off the field. If they do pass the tests, the doctor can still remove them from the field of play. It is important to note that not every head blow results in concussion.

'Evidence'

"We don't think it would be useful for headguards to become mandatory. Headguards are there to deal with lacerations. There is no evidence to show headguards will reduce concussive episodes."

Welsh medical staff were criticised for their treatment of North during the Six Nations-opening 21-16 defeat to England in Cardiff, when the 23-year-old was allowed to return to the pitch having lost consciousness through a collision with team-mate Richard Hibbard.

Mathema said: "What we have found in the incident against England was a gap in our management plan, which we immediately dealt with.

"Following that, we implemented a medical spotter who was watching video footage, and we implemented that for three away Six Nations fixtures.

"At home matches, we have a triple-spotter process - one for the home team, one for the away team and an independent who looks at both teams who will communicate to the match-day doctor.

"This is so we can look at every incident on the pitch and support our on-field medical teams.

"Players that get multiple concussions within a year all have to get reviewed with the appropriate health care professionals.

"There has to be an individual case-by-case basis, and that is the most appropriate way to manage players. As a medical team, what we do with all our management is that we assess risk."