...A concussion is a disruption or disturbance in brain function that occurs following trauma to the head. These patients will usually have lost consciousness, even if it was momentarily. In the United States, an estimated 300,000 sports related concussions occur each year. Some of the common signs that a player may display if he has had a concussion may be confusion, he may appear dazed or have forgetfulness. These players may appear more clumsy or unsure of the game, score or opponents. The player may report headache, nausea, dizziness, sensitivity to light or noise, a feeling of mental fog, changes in sleep patterns or ability to concentrate ("University of Pittsburgh," 2016). These symptoms may persist in varying lengths and degrees for up to 2 weeks or longer. The longer the...
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...Should the rules applied to concussion suffering athletes be modified due to the adverse effects of the severe injury? High thrills and big spills are two aspects of sports which attract billions of viewers worldwide, athletes competing bring so much joy and excitement to our lives yet we seem to underestimate how much these athletes really put on the line for our pleasure. •Concussion is most possibly the worst injury any athlete could suffer as it has major implications not only in the present but also later life • • (Nowinski, 2013) Humans have the choice this impact has on their wellbeing as in most incidents the athlete tries to force their way back into play despite suffering from concussion. •Sports such as AFL, Football, NRL and even...
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...positions. Upon those positions, the goalkeeper is one of the arguably one of the most mentally and physically taxing position on the field. Because of its dynamic duty, goalkeepers have a high risk of receiving a concussion. But what is a concussion? A concussion is a traumatic brain injury that is caused by a blow to the head, a fall, or another injury that jars or shakes the brain inside the skull. Severe concussions can cause long lasting effects that can permanently affect an athlete’s career and everyday life. Finding a way to not only treat concussions more efficiently but prevent them altogether would completely change how athletes play soccer. Concussions rates have increased as the popularity of physical sports has increased, raising the rates and the liabilities for the athletes have experienced a concussion before. The American association of neurological surgeons, the author of “Conditions and Treatments of Concussion”, claims the rates of concussions in players of physical sports, such as soccer, and the percentages within college athletes. As a credible medical organization the article states that “...McGill University in Montreal found that 60 percent of college soccer players reported symptoms of a concussion at least once during the season.” Concussions are an injury every athlete...
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...if they don’t induce symptoms of concussion. Two recent studies conducted on high school athletes in football and hockey, however, concluded this is “not true” and the accumulation of smaller hits to the head is the actual, serious concern. Brain scans were taken on the athletes before, during and after the season, to help assess any damage done. During the study one athlete (hockey) was diagnosed with a concussion while all showed changes in the white matter of the brain. In the second study (football) six athletes were diagnosed with concussions, and 17 others showed changes in their brain. It was estimated that each athlete in the study experienced 200-1900 blows to the head during the season, with each hit ranging from 20-300gs of force. It was suggested that in bulk small blows to the head are a more serious problem for the brain then concussions are. “This research is of special concern with younger athletes whose brains are still forming as well as life-long athletes in any high-impact sport. These athletes are at risk of incurring lifelong neurological effects and/or developing chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a progressive degenerative...
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...Concussions have been an increasingly controversial topic for many years with both reports on an increase of concussions to more awareness towards the issue, how both effects can happen at the same time is a puzzling mystery. The overall opinion of two medical professionals interviewed is that there is more awareness of concussions, causing more concussions to be diagnosed. From constant lawsuits and present and former athletes speaking out against sport associations, concussions are clearly having a large impact on society. According to Tria Physical Therapist Carly Mattson PT, DPT, OCS, a concussion is either caused by an injury or impact to the head or neck. Although once believed that concussions always caused unconsciousness, that is not always the case. “A...
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... The game has always been a very physical game with large injury risk, but as the years go on the game continues to become more and more dangerous. Even with the helps of pads and the newest, safest helmets players still have an extremely high probability of sustaining a minor or serious injury. Some of these injuries can create long lasting health problems that can affect an athlete throughout the rest of their lives. Football is to dangerous of a sport for high school students, because it can cause serious injuries like concussions and also leaves many players with multiple long term health issues. Concussions are a very serious injury that many students experience while playing football. The total number of concussions throughout a season maintains a rapid increase, as it develops into a more frequent and dangerous injury. Over 9500 concussions occurred throughout the 2014 high school football season, and...
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...The most common head injury is a concussion, so it is almost a guarantee that one will have to teach someone who has suffered a concussion in their teaching career. There are many causes for concussions in children including falls from playground equipment, mishaps in gym class and participation in organized sports. It is important that teachers know the common symptoms and the proper treatments that can be used to lessen the effect of a head injury. Classroom strategies are also a crucial thing for educators to understand when teaching to a child who has suffered a concussion. Imagine that you are the teacher who is on playground duty and you heard a loud thud behind you, turning to find that a child has just fallen from the monkey bars. Then, you rush over to check on the student who seems to be dazed and confused but still conscious. This is the first thing to note, according to the authors at Heads Up...
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...more attention over the past few years; the effects of repeated concussions have been demonstrated in a number of high-profile athletes. With multimillion dollars and careers at stake, professional athletic associations have supported the implementation of preseason baseline testing and neuropsychological evaluation to assist in return-to-play decision making and to assess the cognitive sequelae of concussive head injuries. Such comprehensive programs are infiltrating college athletics and most recently have begun to manifest themselves in high school athletics. It is clear that mild head injury is a growing concern in the popular high school contact sports. Statement of Purpose...
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...continue to participate in a game. The researchers picked 314 ice hockey coaches and using a cross-sectional survey with 7 case scenarios. “Each case scenario described a player with a concussion during a game, and scores reflected how the coach would respond to each scenario. Although most coaches would not allow a player to continue participating in a game after suffering a concussion, there was a small percentage that would. Statistical analysis found an inverse relationship between the coaches’ age and consideration of continued participation” (p. 283). This shows that a small group of coaches are still poorly educated...
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...increased intense scrutiny by former players and the media for their lack of action towards preventing concussions. The NFL is often compared to a gladiator arena, where players push through serious injuries and perform spectacular feats in front of a roaring and bloodthirsty crowd. Many people look at professional football players and forget that they are still human. They are not invulnerable to pain, and they are not immune to the side effects that come with playing such a violent game. Former players who played in the 1980’s and 1990’s played with rules that allowed dangerous helmet-to-helmet hits, and in a society that expected them to play through injuries, such as concussions. Players at particular positions are at an additional risk for concussions, with 18.2% of defensive backs suffering concussions sometime in their career (Pellman, Viano). Players that suffered repeat concussions were found to have a much greater risk of “increased neuronal vulnerability”, and that there is an increase in the likelihood of “recurrent concussions with each successive previous injury.” (Guskiewicz). Former players are experiencing increased rates of brain injuries such as depression, dementia, early-onset Alzheimer’s, and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (Pellman, Viano). Over 2,000 former professional football players are now suing the NFL over allegedly hiding the fact that concussions can cause these effects later in life, and argue that the NFL should be responsible for their health...
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...Concussion Awareness Among Athletes The packed stadium all holds their breath. Everyone except the player who is about to catch the ball sees what is going to happen. Then just like that it happens, the loud collision of two bodies slamming into each other, helmet to helmet. The player who just tried to catch the ball drops it on impact and now lays motionless on the field. He gets up with help and walks slowly off to his sideline. This athlete has just suffered what professionals in the medical field call a concussion. This article will be taking a deeper look into what happens to a players brain during a concussion, signs of a concussion, and what rising athletes can do to prevent these concussions. Concussions have been an ongoing controversy as of late in the world of sports and it comes with good reason. Though concussions are most prevalent in football, they are common across the entire sports spectrum. A concussion occurs when the head is hit directly or indirectly, causing a chemical disturbance within the brain that can have immediate consequences. An estimated 1.6 to 3.8 million concussions occur each year (CDC 2012). The numbers will always be very broad when it comes to concussions because so many athletes refuse to take themselves out of their games and a majority of the time they neglect to report any concussion symptoms to a trainer or coach. Lets take a look at some of the factors that contribute to athletes neglecting their concussions. A university study...
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...discussion regarding traumatic brain injury (TBI) and concussions has been inflamed within the media. Prior to this time little research was conducted regarding various forms of TBI, concussions, and enduring consequences of experiencing a TBI. As a result of the many soldiers returning from the continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with TBI diagnosis, much research has been directed toward this field. A sizeable contributor in the media recognition of the significant impact of TBI and concussions is the popularity of the National Football League (NFL) and college football. Players in various professional and college football leagues have long been experiencing TBI as a result of the contact nature of the...
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...Every year, roughly 1.6 to 3.8 million athletes in the United States alone suffer from a concussion (“13 Things You”). But, almost half of these concussions are not reported and therefore not treated (“13 Things You”). Of all sports contributing to the concussion total, football is by far the main contributor. “High school football accounts for 47% of all reported sports concussions, while 33% of these concussions occur during practice,” (“Head Case - Complete”). The main reason for this could be improper technique and teaching, neglect, and other factors. But for these players, high school is followed by college and possibly the National Football League (NFL), where concussions get much more attention and criticism. Concussions in the NFL...
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...read two articles that helped back up my evidence and the first one is called,”Should Kids Play Football,” by Jennifer Shotz. My second helpful article was called, “Hoge Understands the Importance of Youth Football,” by Teresa Varley. Many people say that young kids should be able to play football because it can help with many different parts of their life, while others think that young kids don’t deserve the privilege of playing...
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...Terri Allen Professor Roddy English 1302 17 October 2016 Annotated Bibliography Apps, Jennifer N, and Kevin D. Walter. Pediatric and Adolescent Concussion: Diagnosis, Management, and Outcomes. New York, NY, Springer, http://0-link.springer.com.librus.hccs.edu/book/10.1007%2F978-0-387-89545-1. Jennifer Apps is a pediatric neuropsychologist and assistant director of research in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavior Sciences at the Medical College of Wisconsin. According to her book, with an increase in sports affiliated concussions among children, it has become necessary for practitioners to understand how to go about handling age appropriate assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of the concussions. It is also critical...
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