The Consequences Of A Concussion

In one’s life, the brain is able to recover from ONE traumatic injury like a concussion. One is the limit, no more. Then it comes to sports in the high schools and colleges, and almost half of their team that has/had a concussion. It would also depend on the degree of the concussion if it would be safe or not to play. Students have gotten seriously hurt from sports though. In high school football alone, there is on average 300,000 concussions per year in the US. (The following statistics are in 14 year olds or younger.) In cycling, there is about 34, 366 concussions per year; in basketball, about 11,359. And then in both baseball and

A concussion, which could be caused by a small head movement, is no minor issue as it could lead to brain trauma. Many people are affected by it and many more are vulnerable to it. But the impact isn't the real issue. The real issue is with the lack of healing and recovery. Healing time is crucial when it comes to head injuries and, according to the CDC, most athletes get around 7 days to recover compared to the recommended 1-2 months! Athletes sometimes don't even get time to recover and this could lead to long term effects in life. According to my personal experience, my ability to focus has been greatly reduced because of a concussion. This is a serious issue that is often overlooked my coaches and parents because of their pride and overconfidence in the child. Due to the fact that concussions could lead to permanent brain damage, discomfort, and long term illness, student athletes should be excluded from any athletics until a full recovery had been accomplished.

Concussions are complex cerebral injuries that result in a series of metabolic events within the brain. The changes are seen in the fragile neuronal homeostatic balances where changes in the elevations of glutamate and potassium have been identified. The effects of concussions have also been seen in the functioning of the brain rather than in the structure of the brain itself. Being identified as mild traumatic brain injuries, occurring due to a bump or jolt to head or neck, concussions can result in both short-term and long-term effects. Although most individuals are able to recover from these head injuries, a small but relevant portion of individuals have been found to suffer from chronic long-term effects including early onsets of Alzheimer disease, clinical depression and other cognitive complications. The occurrence of a secondary concussion during the recovery phase of a primary concussion, also recognized as the second impact syndrome, has been shown to increase the risk for long-term effects of cerebral and neurological failure as the neurons have become incapable of experiencing normal functions after an initial traumatic brain injury. The recoveries from these initial concussions are critical to prevent the onset of long-term effects.

two concussions, then a third is 2-4 times more likely, and if they 've had three concussions, then

Sports injuries are often thought of as being physically visible as soon as they happen. Many of these injuries are imagined to be bloody wounds, broken bones, or torn ligaments. Since injuries like the ones mentioned beforehand are visible with the naked eye, they are treated immediately and are not taken lightly. Concussions, on the other hand, are head injuries that cannot be seen with the naked eye. This is what makes concussions more frequent and dangerous to athletes. Concussions are “traumatically induced physiological disruption of brain function that can be caused by either a direct blow to the head or by indirect forces transmitted to the head” (Johnson 181). The symptoms of a concussion include, but are not limited to, headache, dizziness, loss of balance, and blurred vision (McCrea, Hammeke, Olsen, Leo, and Guskiewicz 15). Some patients may not experience any symptoms. Concussions cannot be diagnosed without extensive medical procedures so they are often overlooked. The effects of concussions are often mentally and physiological rather than physical. According to Dr, Syd Johnson, “concussions can result in deficits in attention and concentration, reaction time, processing speed and memory, and executive function” (Johnson 181).

We have all heard of the term “sports injury”. Usually an accident that occurs when engaged in a sport, the ideal can apply from something as frustrating as a rolled ankle to the more debilitating shock of a broken arm. Yet the fact remains that these physical ailments will heal, and properly, if they are treated properly. But what about concussions? What are the long term effects? In her brief editorial in TIME magazine, Alexandra Sifferlin explores the effects of concussions and specifically how they affect children if they aren't disclosed.

Recently, an enormous amount of attention has been given to the long-term effects caused by a concussion. Despite the fact that the understanding and awareness as to the severity of this traumatic brain injury (TBI) has greatly improved, concussions are commonly disregarded, undiagnosed and/or under-treated. Unlike an external injury that is easily seen, a concussion is an internal brain injury; therefore, without the use of diagnostic imaging, the concussion itself is invisible. However, symptoms can be helpful in diagnosing a concussion when diagnostic imaging is not readily available.

In the sports world today, there are many different injuries that athletes experience and one of the most devastating injury is a concussion. Concussions can happen to anyone, in any sport, but we tend to see most concussions in contact sports (Świerzewski 1). While having an informal conversation with my dad about football, he told me it was common for athletes to receive a head injury in a game and continue to play as if nothing was wrong. While watching SportsCenter, I found that some of the greatest retired athletes don’t remember the best moments of their careers due to the lack of treatment. The worst aspect of concussions is that the symptoms can be delayed; in some cases, it’s only a headache so athletes don’t seek medical treatment. Multiple concussions over time can lead to life-threatening complications due to the damage they cause to the brain. Concussions can happen to anybody at anytime, but there is more to concussions than meets the eye.

In the article “Concussions Knowledge in High School Football Players” from the Journal of Athletic training on October 2014, writers Janie Cournoyer and Brady Tripp discuss that high school athletes fail to report symptoms of concussions due to their lack of knowledge on concussion education. For example, after a recent survey, Janie and Brady stated that 54% of participants receive knowledge of concussions from their parents, 60% from an academic source and 25% had no knowledge on what concussions is. The authors also included that most high students who don't report their concussion will likely suffer from post-concussion syndrome and second impact syndrome. It’s dreadful to hear that young athletes can suffer so much just because they lack information on how to evaluate a concussion. Not just the student athlete but the writer explains how parents and coaches have minimal knowledge on evaluating a concussion and choosing whether to put the athlete back to play. In addition, Janie and Brady mention that common symptom presented in a concussion were headaches, dizziness, and confusion. These all can be very harmful to a young athlete because it puts their health at risk. As stated in the article, about 60 - 70% of athletes who suffer a concussion will experience a coma or

If concussions are related to permanent brain damage, then the amount of time spent in recovery should be increased, as supplying ample amount of time will provide reassurance that the brain has healed for athletes who recover quickly and for athletes who naturally need more time to recover.

Many of the earliest effects that athletes suffer from, after sustaining a concussion are: headaches, stroke, seizures, nausea, vomiting, internal bleeding, and hydrocephalus, a buildup of fluid in the brain ("Consequences of a Traumatic Brain Injury", 2016). These are all conditions, that an athlete can suffer from within hours or a few days of an initial hit to the head. These conditions range from minor to severe, the most severe being internal bleeding, and hydrocephalus and the minor ones being, nausea and vomiting ("Consequences of a Traumatic Brain Injury", 2016). No matter the severity of the concussion and it’s affects an athlete that has received multiple concussions is more likely to be faced with conditions that are not as noticeable at first, but lead to a life filled with pain and confusion (Brain Concussion Related Diseases & Conditions, 2016). When an athlete has a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), this leads to hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus, may not be apparent when a Traumatic Brain Injury first occurs, but it does occur in the early stages. However a diagnosis may not appear till a year

The short-term symptoms and effects that occurs after a concussion has happen are headaches and dizziness, they began to occur due to the pressure that is being put to the players head. Headaches and dizziness are the most common symptoms experienced from concussions. Although the symptoms may seem so simple and harmless it can cause a brain trauma and effect the player in the long run. Furthermore they begin to feel confusion, lack of coordination, and memory loss appearing to be stunned or dazed. When that began to occur it’s the tau protein that is building up causing it to take over the body's emotion and movement. The substantial impacts such as the long-term effects are still being studied but are very rare in most cases

A great deal of attention has been conducted on concussions in recent years, along with that has come amassed research that is being done by people all over the world. Every Doctor I have ever counseled with about concussions has said we learn something new every day about concussions. The surface has barely been broken when it applies to knowledge and understanding of concussions. Through my own personal turmoil and experiences I have undergone, I have cultivated many valuable things. The most crucial and valuable advice I could give anyone about concussions is, if you have suffered a concussion do not put yourself in a high risk environment where hitting your head is a possibility until your brain has fully healed. If you just do that, chances are you will heal just fine and heal in the normal recovery period.

How fast can a player be back and ready to play after an injury? What are the consequences of returning too early to play? These are just some of the questions asked by players, coaches and parents. The player generally does not care about his or her injury they just want to be playing again and helping their team. The importance of player health is more important than finishing a season. The athletes don’t get new bodies. So what is the importance of athlete recovery and health?

Once flippantly referred to as having one’s bell rung, mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI) or concussions are no innocuous contusions. Annually in the United States, approximately 1.7 million people sustain a traumatic brain injury that is confirmed through diagnosis. Of these, roughly 75% are categorized as mTBIs or concussions, although the total number of concussions may be slighted considering 81-92% of these injuries do not result in loss of consciousness. Recent controversy concerning professional athletes and their mental health has brought to light evidence that concussions may cause severely deleterious effects on a person’s wellness in later life. This poses the question, to