In late October, Philadelphia Eagles star running back Brian Westbrook suffered a concussion in a game against the Washington Redskins. He sat on the sidelines for two weeks, recovering but when he returned to play on Nov. 15 against the San Diego Chargers, Westbrook got yet another concussion, putting his season and his career in doubt. Westbrook 's immediate re-injury raises the question: should he have been playing at all? And just how many football players are returning to play too soon after concussions, or not having the seriousness of their injuries recognized? On Dec. 3, in the wake of much debate over the long-term damage concussions do to players, the National Football League announced new rules governing concussion management. …show more content…
There will continue to be dangers for athletes in just about any sport. But concussions can lead to serious health issues such as chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE. Concussions and CTE are serious conditions that have to be taken seriously in order to help prevent serious health disorders later in life for millions of people. We are talking about the long-term effects of repetitive concussions. The key word is “repetitive.”It is easy to see that there is quite a bit of knowledge about concussions, but not so much knowledge about the long-term effects of repetitive concussions.The symptoms of concussions are immediate and obvious. However, typically the symptoms of CTE start later in life. For athletes, often the symptoms start after they retired from their sport. The symptoms and timeline for these symptoms can vary per person. Currently, the only way to definitively diagnose CTE is through postmortem neuropathological autopsy, which is done after death.Newfound concern about the wellbeing of football players has focused on the tip of a very large iceberg. Parents, schools, and athletes worry that thousands of amateurs each year may be suffering head injuries similar to the ones that make us gasp during NFL games. But there 's a worse possibility: The most serious brain injuries at all levels of the sport are going completely undiagnosed and undetected. It gives me no pleasure to say this. I am a fan who eagerly awaits game day and the ultimate redemption of my long-suffering
Injuries are a huge part in professional sports. When playing a professional sport athletes do not always take into consideration that their bodies are vulnerable to injuries. One of the leading injuries that can end athlete’s career is concussion. According Kia Boriboon author of the article “Concussion Management In Football: Don 't Shake It Off” concussion occurs when the brain repeatedly collides with the skull. Concussions are serious and cannot be taken lightly they are detrimental to a person’s athletic career as well as life. Players who have suffered from a concussion or like symptoms of a concussion are at risk and should not continue playing their sport until cleared by a medical doctor, who is an expert in concussions. If concussions are not treated with the appropriate medical care, it can cause physical and mental health problems for athletes well after their professional career have ended. In
Most players just want to get back in the game. The average concussion recovery time is about 1-2 weeks. When you get a concussion you can not do any physical activity. After you do not do any activities you can do slight activities, if you get oked by the doctor at your checkup. When you do go in the activity stage then you can keep up the activities as long as you do not get any headaches. At the next checkup the doctor will see if you can go into practice with contact. All these steps if you get headaches then the player will have to tell doctor about it. If you do not have any problems then you can go into games, what the player has waited for through the whole recovery.
Each year, U.S emergency departments treat an estimate 173,285 sports and recreation concussions. During the last decade concussions increased by 60%. Fewer than 10% of concussions result in loss of conscious. Most people recover from a single concussion. Multiple concussions take longer to recover from. The concussion Clinic at Nationwide Children’s Hospital utilizes the expertise of pediatric sports medicine, physical medicine, and rehabilitation specialists.
A. Background In recent years, there has been an increase in research investigating the long-term effects of repeated head trauma on the brain, especially in athletes. Following his discovery of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), Dr. Bennet Omalu inspired a movement of research aimed at establishing better safety standards and protocols in football. It was not until 2002 that the initial connection between repetitive head trauma, such as concussions, and brain injury was suspected (Ott, 2015). As common as concussions were during the late 1970s and 1980s, they were often swept under the rug, as they were seen as insignificant injuries.
Concussions occur regularly on the football field and have always been an injury associated with football. They occur at all levels from little league to the NFL. One of the earliest reported concussion...
Recreational athletes, competitive athletes, high school athletes, college athletes, and professional athletes all have one thing in common: the risk of a concussion. It's impossible to go a season without one athlete from a team receiving a concussion. The more that these concussions are studied, the more we learn about them, such as their detrimental effects on athletes. Because of the risk of health issues and death that come with concussions, doctors, coaches, athletic trainers, and lawmakers are stepping in to protect athletes of all levels from receiving concussions. Concussions occur time after time throughout different sporting events and many are familiar with the word concussion, but what really is a concussion?
The National Football League (NFL) has a concussion problem. Of course, many believe they’ve known that for quite some time. That hasn’t changed the fact that football is America’s favorite pastime (sorry baseball) – and dominates the airwaves each and every Sunday while the season is in session.
A concussion is defined as an “injury to the brain or spinal cord due to jarring from a blow, fall, or the like.” (dictionary.reference.com) it’s hard to think about, but these are common place in our world today. There are various groups, including the NFL, who believe there should be a necessary change in the rules and guidelines with concussions such as the protection of the players, the proper medical support needed for those players, and the relief they get from the league. Since 2012, when they first started keeping concussion statistics, there have been “692 concussions in preseason and regular season games combined”,
A concussion is a physical injury to the head resulting in altered mental function, with expectation of recovery within 2–3 weeks. In a significant minority of cases the symptoms persist longer, thereby comprising a symptom complex commonly referred to as the “post concussion syndrome”, that is, one or more somatic (for example, headaches, dizziness), cognitive (for example, poor concentration, memory), or behavioural/affective (for example, irritability, mood swings) symptoms. Unfortunately, the referral of a patient with the possibility of post concussion syndrome to a busy neurology outpatient clinic can precipitate an inward sigh of reluctant resignation in even the most diligent neurologist or neurosurgeon.
The majority of teens who had encounter a concussion are due to sports. A concussion is a pathophysiological process that impacts the brain, typically caused by a trauma to the brain. Concussions are mainly caused by bumps, falls which makes the head move rapidly back and forth, or by a jolt. The brain is a 3 pound organ floating inside the skull. It’s surrounded by a cerebrospinal fluid, which shocks when its impacted. When the brains starts to move rapidly inside the skull, a concussion has taken place. One common cause is a direct hit to the head. The force makes the brain hit the inside of the skull. When the brain starts to slow down, it hits the other side of the inner skull. The other common scenario is a rotational concussion. This happens when the brain rotates from one side to another. As a result, the brain tissues are strained and sheared. In both cases, fragile neural pathways can be damaged, creating neurological disruption. Scientists suggest if an athlete has already experienced a concussion before, they’re 1-2 times more likely to have a second; 2-4 to have a third; and 3-9 to have a fourth. Surprisingly, research has shown females are more likely to have a concussion, and experience more symptoms compared to males. In addition, women take longer to recover than men. Concussions have shortterm and longterm consequences, or in some cases death.
Since 1958, American Football has been growing, in both popularity and as a sport, to become a dominant force in the country. As a result, more and more families are allowing their kids to play the game in leagues across the country and are not concerned with concussions. Even though people who defend the game will say the science is not yet definitive, tackle football should be banned for kids under the age of fifteen because concussion injuries are on the rise among the youth and the coaches are not yet trained to handle this injury.
Even though the devastation of concussions is just rising to the surface, they have always been around. In 1994, the NFL started a committee called the MTBI (Mild Traumatic Brain Injury). Dr. Elliot Pellman was appointed as chair, and he was quoted saying, “We think the issue of knees, of drugs and steroids and drinking is a far greater problem, according to the number of incidents” (Ezell). This quote shows how concussions did not hold much importance, even though it should have been the committee's main focus. This is ironic, because in today’s sport world concussions are a highly talked about topic. They hold such significance that some rules are even being changed to lower the risk for players.
When, “13-year-old Zackery Lystadt’s head hit the ground as he rolled through a routine tackle in 2006,… [h]e didn’t lose consciousness. But he did… [clutch] the sides of his helmet” (Hamblin). Playing the rest of the game, “[Lystadt] collapsed and was rushed to the hospital, where he required emergency neurosurgery to relieve pressure inside his skull” (Hamblin). An imaging study done later concluded that, “players ages 8 to 13 who have had no concussion symptoms still show changes associated with traumatic brain injury” (Hamblin). In this study, male athletes from ages eight to thirteen had their brains analyzed following a full season, and was compared to analyses of their brains from the beginning of the season. With the data they were able to collect, it was discovered that, “[b]oys who experienced more head impact[s] had more changes [related to the brain’s white matter]” (Hamblin). In wake of this event, “The state of Washington created a new law in [Zackery Lystadt’s] name, sometimes known as the “shake it off” law, which requires players who show signs of concussion to be examined and cleared by a medical practitioner prior to re-entering a game” (Hamblin). With these studies, it would seem that the potential for permanent brain injury would be more carefully considered by coaches, schools, and professional leagues
In the National Football League, technology has been super important for the players’ health. Over the last few years more and more bodies of former professional football players have been observed for brain injuries from football. Many of these players had multiple concussions that have affected them well after their playing careers were over. The Washington Post states that 40% of retired
(3) notify us that a bump, blow, or jolt to the head can cause a concussion, a type of traumatic brain injury. Concussions can also occur from a blow to the body that causes the head and brain to move rapidly back and forth—literally causing the brain to bounce around or twist within the skull. This sudden movement of the brain causes stretching, damaging the cells and creating chemical changes in the brain. Once these changes occur, the brain is more vulnerable to further injury and sensitive to any increased stress until it fully recovers. Amen, et al. (3) notify us that professional athletes who experience one or more of the signs and symptoms listed below, or who report that they just “don 't feel right,” after a bump, blow, or jolt to the head or body may have a concussion. Signs and symptoms of concussion generally show up soon after the injury. But the full effect of the injury may not be noticeable at first. For example, in the first few minutes the athlete might be slightly confused or appear a little bit dazed, but an hour later they can’t recall coming to the practice or game. Concussion policy statements can be developed to include the school or league’s commitment to safety, a brief description of concussion, and information on when athletes can safely return to play. Parents and athletes should sign the concussion policy statement at the beginning of the football