Sports: The Importance Of Concussions In Sports

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

The sound of two helmets bashing together sends a piercing crack through the stadium, soon to be followed by a roar of thunderous applause from every fan in the stadium. The next day the paper reads that one of the players in the collision suffered a concussion, nut the only thing people care about is watching the highlight on SportsCenter. Yet, people watching the games, coaching the games, and playing the games have never fully understood the danger of concussions. It is important for people in the football community to become aware of what head to head hits in football cause because they do not know the true danger of concussions and how often they occur, what concussions can lead to, and how drastically football can decrease the quality

Concussions in high school sports doubled from 2005 to 2012. High School’s put in a new rule called “Return to Play” this rule was put into place so players waited the right amount of time to come back after receiving a serious head injury. Coming back to quick with a concussion can get you hurt even more or possibly cause permanent brain damage. Studies show that a concussion from a high school athlete takes longer to recover from than for older athletes. Also, studies show that even teenagers are at risk for head trauma not just adults and older athletes. Between 2005 and 2012, four thousand twenty-four concussions were diagnosed in nine sports. This is a very high number for just high school sports alone. Concussions have went up in 5 sports mainly those sports are football, wrestling, baseball, basketball and softball. Therefore, concussions have not only effected football. Many people fail to realize how many athletes are truly affected by a

One of the most controversial discussions in sports today is concussions and how the athletes who play sports are being protected. Concussions in the NFL has been a constant argument over the past decade because of not only the number of players who were diagnosed with concussions but also in addition to the number of retired NFL players that reported having depression problems, drug addictions and eventually taking away their own lives by suicide. Football is know to many as “Americas game” and because of this fans live for and look forward to these hard hitting brut athletes that suit up and take the field for battle each week not knowing the facts on how concussions not only ruins the athletes chances of playing again but affects the brain

Concussions have been a recognized disease in sports for decades, but the severity of these injuries has been drastically understated. Many sports, are only now beginning to understand and take action to try and better comprehend and treat concussions, and how to care for those who have sustained them. MAny of the major sports in the country have sustained huge backlash due to their lack of attention, to what is now considered a major health crisis in the country. Steps have been taken to action against the growing numbers of concussions and the ways they are

The hot topic of concussions in football has attracted a considerable amount of unwanted attention in recent years. This problem is continuing to grow at a rapid rate, while our society is oblivious that a problem even exists. Many of us in today’s day in age know someone who has played football at the high school, collegiate, or professional level. The incidence of players who end up with concussions is astounding. It is interesting that someone who has suffered from a concussion can seem virtually symptom free for many years before it causes a number problems. It is estimated that damage to the brain caused by a concussion can last for decades which opens the door for more potentially life

It is a problem when athletes and coaches are hiding concussions from their athletic trainer, so that the athlete is able to keep playing in a game. Some coaches even get mad at athletic trainers for taking out their players for what they think is just a “headache”. Most do not know the dangers of keeping a concussed athlete in the game. Between high school football and women’s soccer athletes, that sixty-nine percent of concussed athletes reported playing with symptoms, of those athletes, forty percent reported that their coach was not aware of their concussion (Rivara et al., 2014). In a research study a cumulative concussion incidence of one fall season resulted in 11.1% concussed women’s soccer athletes and 10.4% football athletes.

When participating in a sport, the players are aware of the risks. Physical damage is always a strong possibility, but what about the mental damage that a player can receive. Concussions have been known to occur frequently in contact sports, making the rules based on injuries in need of change. The current rule is that after an injury occurs, players have to have a medical professional sign off before they are allowed to play. This is great for injuries related to the physical form of a person, but when it comes to the mental aspects, these rules need to be re-written. Things such as the types of people affected by concussions, how vulnerable concussions can be on the mind, and how concussions can affect everyone around a person that has been inflicted by a concussion, should be brought into consideration while deciding a specific set of

Brain trauma is extremely dangerous and in some cases fatal. It is imperative for anyone participating in sports to learn the signs and symptoms of a concussion as well as the long-term effects. Educating the youth of these consequences will teach them that it is key to abstain from high intensity, contact sports until completely healed to ensure their best possible health. Thank you for your time and I hope to hear from you

Sports hold tremendous value in American society and all athletes have at least one thing in common: the risk of getting a concussion. A concussion is a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that results from a direct/indirect action or force that causes the brain to shake rapidly within the skull (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2016). This injury can mildly or severely affect the brain’s function by damaging brain cells and producing chemical alterations (CDC, 2016). Throughout the years, concussions have been more prevalent not only in professional sports, but among youth, college, and recreational sports as well. Despite the remarkably high statistics on concussions in the U.S., many cases still go unreported (Groce & Urankar, 2016, p. 22). Sustaining this injury can significantly set a person back physically, mentally, and emotionally. Due to the risks and health issues associated with concussions doctors, athletic trainers, coaches, and lawmakers are getting involved to protect athletes of all levels from receiving concussions.

With an average of 300,000 cases a year in the U.S alone, concussions have become a major topic in the athletic world. (Gessel et. al 2007) In the mid to late 1900’s many people were under the belief that a concussion was not that big of a deal and kids were rarely checked for an injury. It wasn’t until recent years that doctors actually researched concussions and realized that they were a big deal just like any other brain injury. The rise in concussions awareness has happened because of the lasting effects that numerous concussions can have on the brain. These effects can include an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer's, and Dementia. Because of these new studies professional

In many recent studies, scientists and doctors have been making significant discoveries about the difference between women’s and men's rates of concussions in various sports. This is shown through the process of how women and men deal with concussions, statistical data, and the equipment for both women and men.

Underreporting concussions is a growing issue among young athletes for several different reasons including jeopardizing spot on the field or letting teammates down, do not want to seem weak to their coaches, parents or teammates, want their peers to think they are tough and can “take the hit”, or they do not want to be pulled out of the game or practice. Some athletes believe that if they can get up and walk away from it, they can keep playing but this is not the case. In most cases they do not feel the symptoms until a few hours after the actual impact occurs. In a study conducted by Chrisman (2013), he gave high school varsity athletes 4 hypothetical scenarios of collisions. When giving these scenarios, the “investigators” refrained from

Knowing these policies and being up-to-date on the most current concussion recovery research is necessary for those involved in any way with youth sports. As coaches, parents, and players become aware of the research, it will be possible to determine the most effective way to help athletes understand the severity of concussions. Current post-concussion return-to-play policies for high school-aged youth do much to ensure that the youth has recovered enough to return to play, but stricter policies must be implemented. These changes should be made due to how easy it is to miss the symptoms of a concussion and the dangerous effects of returning too early, the long-term effects of concussions, and the unique differences among individual

Out of these five sports, soccer, baseball, and basketball are not contact sports, but there are still numerous cases where athletes still get injured with concussions. Dr. Bakhos, a researcher at Hasbro Children’s Hospital and Brown University, does not want parents to worry about how concussions can affect their child because their overall health and well-being is more important even though they may be at risk of getting a concussion. Dr. Bakhos believes that most concussions are mild and that it should not pose a threat to an individual’s life as long as it is treated properly (Thornton, 2010). The effects of not having a concussion treated properly could range between lapsing into a coma and eventually dying or waking up from a coma with permanent brain damage (American Association of Neurological Surgeons, 2012). The concern in many cases when an individual suffers a big hit in a sport, they continue to play on without getting the medical staff to check if they have suffered from a concussion. According to Jon Butler, from POP Warner football program, so much of it was a lack of awareness. It was like you got your bell rung, get back in the game (as cited in Head Injuries in kids Sports, 2013). The message that Jon Butler is trying to get across is that the coaches nowadays, are more