Parents and coaches may soon have a new tool for evaluating their child athletes for concussions. Researchers from the NYU Langone Concussion Center have determined that the King-Devick test is an effective way to gauge head injuries in children as young as five years old if no physician is available.

The test, developed in 1976, has been applied to college-aged athletes before, but this is the first it has been used to assess children. The study, published in the new Journal of Neuro-Ophthalmology, showed that the test gave reasonably accurate readings on head injury in the 243 children it followed over a single season.

Here’s how the test works: At the beginning of each season, players are shown a series of three cards with numbers written on them and are asked to read the numbers from left to right as fast as they can. Each card reading is timed, and the three times added together make up the player’s baseline score. After a suspected head injury, the process is repeated and the results compared.

Of course, such tests are never 100% accurate and cannot replace a trained medical professional in diagnosing concussions, but this low-tech tool may be able to give coaches and parents some direction after a hit to the head.

*Scientists have no conclusive evidence as to whether or how the reduction of g-forces during impacts reduces the number or degree of concussions and head injuries. GelDefender products provide supplemental padding as well as cooling and comfort benefits when used with helmets and caps. Participants in activities in which head impacts can occur should always use tested and approved helmets for protection. However, no helmet or supplemental padding can protect the user from all serious head or neck injuries that can result from impacts.