BOOM! My head slams into the glass. Then suddenly I feel weak as I fall down to the ice. As I look up, my coach appears next to me asking me if I’m okay. At that very moment I feel lost as I can barely think, laying in pain on the ice. I’m sure that this is not the only story of someone getting injured in sports nowadays. The reason I say this is because, all sports and at any age are becoming too intense. It’s not always the people playing the sports either. I have experienced and witnessed it all myself.
As sports get more and more intense over the years, the injuries become more intense as well. Also with the fact that the number of injuries in sports is on the rise. With up to 20 to 30 million kids playing sports each year, more than 4 million are reporting sports-related injuries. From these sports-related injuries, millions of them could have lasting affects on young bodies. To add on to this, about 175,000 kids are treated for concussions each year because of sports-related activities. This is not all either, more athletes are showing up injured or having significant injuries in high school sports. This news is very surprising because people did not see these things happening 15 years ago.
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That’s not all either, about 87 percent of kids felt there parents pushed them way too much in their sport. So in reality, this is a main factor of why sports are getting too intense. But all we are doing is contributing to it getting
A nationwide epidemic is occurring throughout the United States and is on the rise. Although many know about it, they fail to realize the side effects and diseases that can that lay dormant, waiting to be awakened and devastate their lives and potentially end them. Concussions are increasing annually among athletes in contact sports. Children and adults participating in these particular sports are potential victims of concussions and the long lasting side effects. The concerns of athletes receiving concussions is rising because as studies progress, many are leading to the conclusion that concussions impose future health complications.
Athletes from over one-hundred high schools and one-hundred-eighty colleges were studied in order for researchers to investigate the epidemiology of concussions and to compare the rates of concussions among high school and collegiate athletes. Two injury surveillance systems, High School Reporting Information Online (RIO), and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Injury Surveillance system collected data and this data was analyzed to calculate concussion rates, describe patterns, and evaluate potential risk factors for sports-related concussions. It was then discovered that 8.9 percent of high school athletic injuries and 5.9 percent of collegiate athletic injuries were concussions. Rates of concussions for both collegiate and high
In recent years an abundance of brain injury research has provided evidence of the lifelong impairments affecting children who have sustained a sports related concussion. Although the information on and how to prevent sports related concussions have been distributed among both athletic coaches, faculty and parents alike, sports related concussions often go unreported. Lack of proper education has lead parents and coaches to believe sports related concussions as being “minor injuries” (Macdonald).
In medical terms, concussions are described as "a complex pathophysiologic process affecting the brain, induced by traumatic biomechanical forces" (Hunt, Paniccia, Reed, & Keightley, 2016, p. 749). Over the past couple of years, the number of concussions in athletics has increased drastically. According to the data released by the National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study, in the school year 2005-06 there were 133,000 concussions, which was much less than the recent data of the 2014-15 school year of 292,000 (Brzycki, 2016, p. 57). Not only are concussions becoming more prominent, but they accounted for 24.5% of all the injuries in 2014-15 (Brzycki, 2016, p. 57). Although many advances in concussion protocol have been
In recent studies, it has been found that concussions resulting from athletics are becoming increasingly dangerous while at the same time given less consideration. Sports related mild traumatic brain injuries in children have increased by sixty percent in the last decade. Approximately 173,285 cases of mild traumatic brain injuries relating to sports are treated each year in U.S. emergency departments (CDC).
With the growth of contact sports, such as football, hockey and wrestling, neurologists have seen a shocking rise in the number of reported concussions. Perhaps the greatest increase of SRCs have been seen in adolescents participating in organized team sports. In a 10-year span, emergency department visits for 8 to 13-year-old children doubled, while 14 to 19-year-olds nearly tripled (McCrea, Nelson and Janecek, 2014). The actual number of these concussions are thought to be higher than reported because the inclination of athletes to not recognize this injury.
Current United States statistics indicate approximately 7 million head injuries occur each year. Seven hundred thousand of these relate to sports and recreational activities, and three hundred thousand relate directly to sports. Eight deaths occur each year in professional football due to brain injury (Genuardi & King, 1995). These deaths most commonly result from subdural hematoma, when blood collects within the brain, and the associated brain injury. About 20% of participants in high school football suffer a concussion in a single season. Ongoing studies by the National Athletic Trainers Association showed, “a 17% increase in minor head injuries and an 85% increase in moderate head injuries in high school football comparing the 1980s to the 1990s” (Powell, 1998). A portion of these increases is because of better and more comprehensive reporting systems but the risk of concussion remains. Further, a football player who suffers one mild brain injury (MBI) has four times the risk to sustain a second MBI (Young, Jocobs,Clavette, Mark, & Guse, 1997).
The purpose of the study is to bring awareness about the seriousness of concussion injuries. Examining the severity of high school athletes who suffered sport related concussions is critical to determine the short term/long term damaging effects. When athletes’ concussions go undiagnosed, the risk of further damages increases since they are not fully recovered. This means that athletes will return to participation unknowingly since the injury goes undetected. In addition, when parents, coaches, doctors, and athletes are aware about the dangers of concussions, they can have a conversation and discuss the best options to ensure the safety of athletes. This means that injured athletes will not be allowed to participate under any
During the investigation of the epidemiology of concussions, they compared high school and college athletes. They found approximately 300,000 sports related brain injuries happens yearly in the United States, which is the second leading cause of brain injuries for ages 15 to 24. The sample included 100 high schools and 180 colleges and the data calculated rates, described patterns, and likely risk factors for athletes.
Concussions in sports have become a very popular issue in the past century. Athletes are becoming bigger, faster, stronger, and more aggressive. With this, though, comes more injuries as a whole and injuries that are more dangerous as well. Parents, coaches, fans, and athletes have become more aware of how dangerous concussions can be and what effect they can have on an individual throughout the rest of their life. Many advancements and changes have been made in an attempt to keep athletes and players safer and more protected. Some individuals believe parents, coaches, and trainers are becoming overly protective and are ruining the entertainment of the game and the competitiveness of the players. Any sort of traumatic brain injury can have many effects on the individual; there are short-term, medium-term, and long-term consequences of concussions that can continue affecting the individual for fourteen years after he or she has suffered the head injury. Although many advancements have been made and preventing concussions has become a priority in the ‘sports-world,’ authority figures and athletes still ignore the symptoms of concussions to allow the athlete to continue to participate. However, in order to continue the entertainment that sporting events bring fans and the enjoyment that they bring to the participants, more precautions should be made to keep the players on the field and in good health.
A Worldwide survey of emergency room visits shows that about every 25 seconds, a young athlete visits a hospital emergency room from a sports-related injury (Loehrke and Healy, USA TODAY). Occasional bumps and bruises are expected when kids play sports, but when almost 1.4 million kids are injured and sent to hospitals its catches someone’s eye. Sprains, strains, fractures, contusions, abrasions, and concussions all top the list of ER diagnoses for kids age 6-19. That’s averaging a cost of up to 935 million a year. Many believe these are preventable (Carr, Safe Kids).
A 2011 study of U.S. high schools with at least one athletic trainer on staff found that concussions accounted for nearly 15% of all sports related injuries reported to athletic trainers. More than 248,000 children visited hospital emergency departments in 2009 for concussions and other traumatic brain injuries related to sports and recreation. Injuries associated with participation in sports and recreational activities account for 21% of all traumatic brain injuries among children in the United States. These statistics, all gathered by and coming from SWATA (Southwest Athletic Trainers’ Association), a branch of the NATA (National Athletic Trainers’ Association) are all reputable facts that were analyzed by healthcare professionals in the field of sports and that deal with athletes everyday. No argument for why a child should become one of these statistics is needed, given the gross number of cases and the severity of them
Concussions can have severe effects on an athlete. They can lead depression, memory loss, and event death. However, with growing research, it is possible to take preventative measures, identify the likelihood of a concussion and engage in treatment. Undiagnosed concussions can lead to more severe injuries and athletes should be concerned about, aware of them and treat them. With new technology, greater awareness, and growing acceptance that concern should be less on winning a game than preventing and treating a concussion, it is possible that one day, concussions may be a rare thing of the
Concussions in youth sports has recently became more popular in the news. Mukand and Serra recently discovered, “about 1.6- 3.8 million sports-related concussions occur every year, and a recent study found that 182,000 football players may sustain at least one concussion annually in youth (99,000), high school (76,640), and NCAA football programs (3,905), or about 1 in 30 players and 1 in 14 high school players” (16). The amount of concussions should be alarming to athletes and the parents. Hospitals have noticed a growing number of visits from children and young adults with concussions because of sports, but it is unclear if the rise is due to more concussions or more reports due to better awareness of concussions (Mitka 1775-1776). Concussions could be on the rise or more people are recognizing the symptoms of concussions and then reporting them. Either way, concussions in youth sports need to be reduced or completely eliminated. Sports related concussions in youth can be prevented with proper education and technique. Efficient and reliable equipment and better rules and regulations in youth sports can also prevent concussions and brain injuries in youth and adolescents.
Injuries in youth sports are rising faster than ever. Some people say it is because they do not play enough. Some people are the complete opposite and think they play way too much. What if both of these do not really contribute to the equation as much as some people believe? Over 12 million kids get hurt playing sports in the US every year (Brown par 4). The major reason for the increase in injuries is singling into one sport at a very young age. Whether it is to “improve” your chances to get a scholarship or to make it to the next level or you do not enjoy any other sports. You are putting yourself at an increased risk of injury. Youth who single into a sport are more likely to get injured.