NEW YORK (AP) -- The risk of concussions from football and some other sports is so serious that a qualified athletic trainer should always be on the field — at adult and children's games, and even at practice, a major doctors group said Monday.

Following that advice from the American Academy of Neurology would be a dramatic change for youth sports programs, most of which don't have certified trainers.
The doctors group recognizes it isn't necessarily feasible. One official called it a gold standard to strive for.
“We understand completely that is undoable in today's environment, but we think that is a correct way to organize our priorities,” said Dr. Jeffrey Kutcher, chair of the academy's sports neurology section. He said that if a certified athletic trainer is not available to a school, perhaps contact sports should be avoided.
The recommendation was part of broader guidance from the academy on sports concussions. The group also said no athlete with concussion symptoms should be allowed to take part in sports, and that athletes of all ages who are suspected of suffering concussions should be evaluated by a specialist before returning to sports.
The new position statement follows rules already adopted in college sports and pro football aimed at preventing and better treating blows to the head. Research involving NFL players suggests repeated concussions may have long-term consequences such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
Medical groups want to get the message “to the athletes, their parents and their coaches that a concussion is not just a ding, or getting your bell rung, but it is an injury to the brain,” said Dr. Mark Halstead of Washington University, who co-authored an earlier concussion report for the American Academy of Pediatrics. Concussions “need to be treated as if they are a big deal. The brain is pretty important.”
Signs of a concussion include unconsciousness, unsteadiness, problems with memory or concentration, dizziness or headache. The neurology academy is the most authoritative medical group when it comes to concussions. And its new advice sweeps across all ages and types of athletes.
Certified athletic trainers now work at about 40 percent of the nation's high schools but are rarely provided for athletes in younger grades, said Kevin Guskiewicz of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, the lead author of the National Athletic Trainers' Association statement on managing concussions.
Guskiewicz said it would be a struggle to find enough athletic trainers to meet the neurologists' recommendation.
Jim Louro, a league safety officer for the Jersey Shore Pop Warner Football League, said his league already pays emergency medical technicians to attend games and an ambulance is often on site.