Cause And Effect Essay On Concussions

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The number of children below the age of 19 are treated in American emergency rooms for concussions and other traumatic brain injuries increased from 150,000 in 2001 to 250,000 in 2009. That’s not cumulative, that is actually per year. Everyone should know how and when to treat a concussion, no matter if it is for sports or in general. Concussions can come from anything. Concussions can be an easily preventable injury, however due to poor equipment, a competitive mindset, unrecognizable symptoms, and untrained sports physicians, they are becoming quite common and can lead to potentially fatal brain disorders. Concussions can spring from practically anywhere; at home during cleaning, playing catch in the yard, or even slipping and falling. One …show more content…

It should be common knowledge on the symptoms of a concussion and what to do to help it heal, especially coaches. Because of the mindset that coaches give towards their players and the spirit of the game, athletes do not report their injuries to their coaches. One reports states, “The culture of sports negatively influences athletes’ self-reporting of concussion symptoms and their adherence to return-to-play guidance” (Waldron). This means that athletes could have any injury, not just a concussion, and they would be afraid to tell the coach because they are afraid of getting taken out of the game. More coaches, however, are starting to come around to educating the team and support staff about head injuries. Some coaches are actually sitting their teams down and making them watch a video on what happens during a concussion. In one report, the athletes said that after they watched the video, “they would be sure to get an injury checked out and would stop to consider if they had gotten a concussion after a hard hit” (Mitchko 101). They also received a packet in which they they were given a tool kit containing several items such as another video, a pocket card detailing symptoms of a concussion to use during a …show more content…

Several senators have openly supported getting better equipment for high schools and even younger kids. Jay Rockefeller, a democrat from West Virginia, seeks to “protect youth athletes from the dangers of concussions by curbing false advertising claims and encouraging improvements to equipment safety standards” (Waldron). This is good news because this means that congress knows about all the head injuries and they are wanting to do something about it. West Virginia has also taken steps to prevent and help heal concussions. Every coach, no matter what sport they coach, has to go to a seminar or class detailing what to do in the event of a concussion, what the symptoms are, and how to keep them from happening. They have to do this before every season of their sport, even if they coach multiple sports. After this seminar, the coaches are required to bring a paper back to their athletes that tells them the same things. The athlete, even if they are over 18 years old, and their parents must sign off on the paper signifying that they had read and understood the paper. This is a great step towards cutting down concussion injuries because they have got it in writing that they understand everything about head

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