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Today, many professional, college and high school athletes throughout our country suffer from a common injury. It is an injury with serious side effects that can permanently change their lives. This injury is a concussion. Concussions are a constant threat in the game of sports. Coaches and athletes were under the assumption that a head injury that didn’t require a trip to the hospital could be ignored. We have been raised in a culture that celebrates hard knocks as a rite of passage, we don’t think twice about the bandages around our heads. (Carroll and Rosner 11). According to the Disease Control and Prevention Center, there are an estimated 1.6 to 3.8 million sports related head injuries in the United States each year. With the increasing number of concussions, the issue is relevant in today’s society. Concussions are a traumatic brain injury. In order to understand this growing issue, we need to become aware of what a concussion is, the testing and treatment that is used and the lifelong effects that concussions can cause. It is important for athletes to know this vital information about concussions in order to keep safe. “Concussion derives from the Latin word “concutere” which means to shake violently” (Cantu and Hayman 5). According to mayoclinic.org, “a concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that is caused by a blow to the head or body, a fall or another injury that jars or shakes the brain inside the skull”. The brain floats in cerebrospinal fluid inside the skull. During a sudden abrupt blow to the head, the brain bounces against the sides of the skull. Damage happens when your brain hits the skull because the skull is rough on the inside instead of smooth. This damage can alter the brain cell st... ... middle of paper ... ...f play from elementary to the professional athlete is at a risk for a concussion. Competitors are becoming bigger, faster, and stronger, which lead to more forceful collisions. It is important for an athlete to understand what a concussion is, testing and treatment used, and the life long effects concussions can lead to. Over the last decade, concussion awareness has increased dramatically to help protect the players. Coaches, parents and athletes have many resources today were they can learn about this traumatic brain injury. There are also tests that are used to help athletes return to play safely. It is important to stay informed about concussions because they are impossible to prevent and can have life long physical and mental effects. One concussion can altar an athlete’s life or their families. No game is more important than the health of an athlete.
A concussion may be caused by a blow, bump, or jolt to the head or by any fall or hit that jars the brain. A concussion causes the brain to work longer and harder. A concussion affects the mental stamina and function of the brain. Even though concussions are very serious and potentially life threatening to the young athlete, studies show that less than 50% of high school athletes will report their concussions. Almost all athletes
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.
From the year 2001 to 1005 children aged 5-18 accounted for 2.4 million emergency room visits due to sports related injuries. Of these visits around 6 percent involved a concussion(The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Every athlete that receives a concussion does not necessarily go to the emergency room. Athletic trainers, when available and certified, can oversee the recovery of an athlete without a trip to the emergency room. Some concussions go untreated altogether. While the percentage may seem low, looki...
The injury is defined as a concussion when “it causes a change in mental status such as amnesia, disorientation, mental fogginess, confusion, nausea or vomiting, blurred vision or loss of consciousness.” (Mayo Clinic, n.d.)
Football is America’s favorite sport. It is a fast-paced, hard-hitting game. Every week thousands of men and boys all across the country take part in football and every week these men and boys receive violent hits during the game. Frequently, as a result of these violent hits, the player receives a concussion. However, the long-term effects of concussions on players are not fully understood. New research shows that even a slight concussion in a football game can have lasting effects on a player. As a result of this research, children under the age of fourteen should not play tackle football.
Concussions can spring from practically anywhere; at home during cleaning, playing catch in the yard, or even slipping and falling. One of the most common reasons concussions happen is from sports, most often from football. 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 su...
An anonymous person once said, "He who has health has hope; and he who has hope has everything." Ever since I was a young girl, I always knew I wanted to do something with helping people. But as I grew up, I also took an interest in sports, which leads me to where I am today. I would like to be able to help people in the sports ' world. In this essay, I plan to research concussions and how the long-term effects can impact people for the rest of their lives. Through research, I have learned exactly what a concussion is, the long-term effects and severity, and finally the treatments for a concussion. This relates to my senior project because for my final product, I will be presenting the lasting effects of concussions.
In the article “Should Kids Play Football” from the Scholastic Scope on February 2015, writer Jennifer Shotz discusses both issues of the benefits and dangers of playing American football. For example, Jennifer Shots mentioned that tens of thousands of young football players get concussions every year. She states that most players return to the game after they are healed but some never return because their concussion was too severe to their health. On the other hand, the writer also discusses how football isn't the only sport that encounters concussions. The rules of football are always changing and each new rule provides a safer way to play the game. For example, the writer notes that Pop Warner has reduced the amount of practice time dedicated
Through sports or through everyday life, concussions tend to happen. An estimated 300 000 sport-related traumatic brain injuries, predominantly concussions, occur annually in the United States. Sports are second only to motor vehicle crashes as the leading cause of traumatic brain injury among people aged 15 to 24 years. (U.S National Library of Medicine). Coaches and parents often do not go through the right procedures or protocols when dealing with a teenager who has received a blow to the head. The usual questions that are asked when there is a head injury are, “what day is it, what’s the score, and how many fingers am I holding up?” Now these are not poor questions, but these questions alone cannot determine if a person has suffered a concussion. The correct method, which they are now implementing in most professional sports leagues, is for anyone with a head injury to take a legitimate concussion test performed by the team doctor. (WebbMD) At present the symptoms can be hit or miss. After receiving a concussion, research shows that an “estimated 80 to 90% of concussions heal spontaneously in the first 7 to 10 days”. (Barton Straus) But, it is important to remember not to return until all symptoms are
A concussion is a traumatic brain injury caused by a blow to the head causing it to move rapidly back and forth. When a person is hit, the brain shifts or twists inside the skull causing a chemical change in the brain damaging the brain cells ("What Is a Concussion?" Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 31 Jan. 2017). CTE or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy is a disease that mainly occurs in athletes, military veterans and others
As an American traditional sport, football appears to be a dangerous influence upon the youth causing physical and mental restraints. In today’s society, preventative measures no longer seem to be a priority, focusing more on players and their MVP status. What worries people are possible head concussions affiliated with football itself and strategies to overcome this burden might excel by educating high school students on safety measures and forcing a regulatory guideline on students who have suffered head injuries. As serious as it sounds, concussions are not only severe to players, but can also cause long term effects.
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.
Following behind motor vehicle crashes, traumatic brain injury in sports is the second leading cause of traumatic brain injuries for people fifth-teen to twenty-four years of age. Immense concerns follows given that American football accounts for the highest incidence of concussions (Rowson and Duma 2130). In addition, th...
Sports play a huge role in the lives of many. For some, being involved in a sport can be a gateway to better opportunities in the form of being scouted and receiving a scholarship to a prestigious university. Others may see sports as a way to bond with friends and family. Being able to pick a team to root for and being a genuine fan can bring a sense of unity to a household. But like most things in life, there are potential drawbacks. In this case, said drawbacks could come in the form of a concussion, which ranks amongst the top ten most common sports related injuries. Although seen as a fun career or hobby, there are always dangers lingering around one wrong blow to the head.
First, we observe that in order for a concussion to occur, a rapid change in the motion of the skull must also occur within a short amount of time. This results in the brain (which tends to remain in a constant state of motion) colliding with the inside of the skull as the skull begins to change its state of motion. This causes compressional force on the cerebrum resulting in brain injury.