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Essay On Concussions

1157 Words5 Pages

It was recess time at Lake Harbor Middle School, and a group of boys were playing basketball. Two of the boys went for the same ball, and they ended up colliding, falling to the ground. On his way down, one of the boys hit his head on the concrete. This caused him to ask a continuous loop of questions for two hours after the initial impact. Now, almost two years later, the boy still does not remember the day he got his first concussion. Stories like this are not uncommon, especially in the physically demanding sports culture we live in today. Concussions should be taken seriously due to the negative effects they can have on the brain. The definition of a concussion is an injury to the brain or to the spinal cord due to jarring from a blow, …show more content…

The pressure put on kids to perform from coaches, parents, and peers is a lot, and can lead an athlete to put a sports team over their own health. According to Dr. Aaron Karlin, the Director of the Concussion Management Program at Ochsner, “A concussion won’t appear on a CAT scan or MRI, as it is a functional injury to the brain”(Ochsner). Due to the fact that these injuries do not show up on scans, it is completely up to the injured athlete and anyone surrounding them to report any symptoms after a big hit. Although this may sound simple, some athletes ignore symptoms to stay in the game or to return quicker after already being taken out. In a report from the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council it stated this,” There is still a culture among athletes that resists both the self- reporting of concussions and compliance with appropriate concussion management plans” (Hoffman). This mindset with concussions is easy. Oftentimes, after a few days, the symptoms have subsided and you feel like yourself, ready to jump back into sports and school as if nothing happened. Even if the symptoms haven’t subsided, many kids feel the pressure to act as if they are better just to help their team win the next game. In order for the mindset that sports come first over health to stop, parents, coaches, and athletes all need to be aware of the seriousness of even the most minor

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However, it is also important to note that a concussion can also take place outside of sports, meaning it can happen to anybody. For instance, there have been incidents where a person tripped while running, fell, and the impact of their head’s contact with the ground caused a concussion. Or, in a car accident many front-seat passengers, or even the driver, have slammed their heads against the dashboard/steering wheel, also possibly resulting in a concussion. Concussions when treated can be healed in a timely manner. Unfortunately, throughout history, there has been a tendency for people to overlook a concussion as a serious injury, therefore, making it more problematic than it already is.

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In the article "heads up: concussions in high school sports", it exemplifies how high school athletes are more vulnerable to concussions and may take longer to recover based upon immaturity of the central nervous system, the lack of recognition that a concussion has occurred, and the reliability of symptoms. The document, "concussion: potential causes and long-term impact", supports the conclusion of how repeated injuries can result in permanent brain damage. If an athlete where to experience a concussion more than once, then these effects can be permanent. The damage can affect them in other careers too. This is why it is important to let athletes have more recover time for concussions: another concussion occurring in that same time frame can alter their mental status and the team may loose that athlete forever.

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Tough luck on the field and courts for players in extreme contact sports happen almost frequently. From broken arms, fingers, shoulders, and etc; no other sports injury is more detrimental to athletes then receiving a concussion. The strength of players to take hard hits and get back to the game is always amazing however it is not safe for the players. Although safety measures and protective wear have improved, players need additional time to bounce back from concussions. Athletes who suffer from concussions have long lasting problems that impair both cognitive and physical functioning.

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Concussions Many students at my school have experienced concussions. Charlie Day is one of them. Charlie described to me what happened when he got his concussion. During Charlies freshman year he was playing soccer he went to head the ball and an opposing team player was trying to do the same thing except he completely missed the ball and hit Charlie’s head.

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Concussions in Sports In sports, concussions occur frequently across all age groups. From little leagues to high school sports to the professional leagues, concussions pose a high risk of long term Traumatic brain injuries. Because of the high rate of concussions in sports more attention should be paid to protocols and treatment to prevent traumatic brain injuries. High school athletes that partake in a sport that requires intense physical activity are the most vulnerable to concussion and need more time to recover. According to the Head Case “High school football accounts for 47 percent of all reported sports concussions, with 33 percent of concussions occurring during practice.”

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A concussion usually comes from a blow to the head that rattles the brain and causes it to swell. “High school and even some college programs lack the resources necessary to protect their players from concussion”(Football).

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When student athletes participate in contact sports, they run the risk of getting a concussion. A concussion, according to The American Academy of Neurology, is defined as "A trauma induced alteration in mental statues that may or may not result in loss of consciousness". Short term effects could cause a change in mood, along with headaches and nausea; whereas long term effects of a concussion can range from drastic behavioral changes and mood disturbances to cognitive difficulties. These symptoms are very prevalent in student athletes that may get a concussion and can only get worse when one has been re-concussed. I believe that student athletes should be required to sit out for a longer period of time following the events of a concussion.

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Multiple concussion can result in a lifetime of mental issues and long term effects. College athletes put excessive time into their sports. Some Division 1 athletes

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The topic that will be displayed in this research prospectus is how the NFL has poorly handled the ongoing concussion epidemic amongst its players and the problems that come along with it. Every time players step foot on the field they are taking the risk of suffering from a concussion due to the physicality of the sport. Concussions have an everlasting lasting effect on humans and can lead to serious mental health problems. After their careers, there have been many instances where concussions have led to players developing serious mental health issues. There have been many concerns around the league about the concussion protocol and how it has been processed.

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Not only are states making legal actions, but parents and doctors are stepping up to make sure athletes are ready before clearance is given. “I think we all worry about sending a kid back out there too soon. Any doctor who says otherwise is lying,” said Greg Canty, director of the Center for Sports Medicine at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. Concussions are a big issue today, and should be treated even more serious than they are. There are many viewpoints regarding this issue.

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America is obsessed with sports and competition, and one sport that signifies America is football. Today many professional football players across the country suffer from a common injury which is a concussion. This injury can threaten an athletics career and most of all permanently injure the brain. Former retired NFL players now deal with short term memory loss, and depression because of this brain injury. The increased amount of concussions in athletics today calls for more education on diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of traumatic brain injury.

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A concussion is when the body becomes subject to a hit which causes the brain to bounce around within the skull. Because of the way that concussions occur they are commonly known as a sports injury, especially a football injury. By allowing children to participate in tackle football from Elementary School up, they are being subject to repetitive unnecessary amount of early onset mental problems. “Sometimes people call a concussion a "mild" brain injury. It is important to understand that while concussions may not be life-threatening, they can still be serious” (Brain Concussion).

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THE INCREASING NUMBER OF CONCUSSION IN ATHLETES ARE DETRIMENTAL TO THE FUTURE OF SPORTS In the recent years, concussions have become a common accident related to various types of sports around the globe. A concussion is a traumatic injury of the brain, they can also be as a result of a sudden blow on the body. Such a blow may cause the head to jerk back and forth in a rapid motion. This may cause a bounce or twist within the skull, which may over stretch the brain, cause cell damage and alter chemical functioning within the brain.

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"By the time they get to high school, kids have a 5% chance of sustaining a concussion for each season they play" (Zimmerman). If they choose to keep playing football then they will eventually end up with a brain concussion or brain damage. Over the years 65-80% of head injuries go unnoticed ("Stopping the..."58).   Football player ignore the fact that it is just a headache. Hospitals took 150,000 in 2001 to 250,000 in 2009 dramatically increased because of concussions ("Injuries in...").

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According to a research report from Loehrke, a young athlete suffers a sports related injury that is severe enough to go to the emergency room approximately every 25 seconds, or 1.35 million times a year. The most prominent of these injuries were concussions, which accounted for 163,670, or 12 percent of the total 1.35 million injuries (Loehrke). Dr. Alexander K. Powers, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Wake Forest Baptist Health in North Carolina, found that most children who suffer concussions recover, but the prognosis for children who suffer recurring concussions is unknown. Recurring concussions could lead to several disabilities later in life, such as dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer 's disease, epilepsy, and many other neurological disorders that would require a substantial amount of surgery to cure, if they could even be cured at all (Powers). Putting a child at risk to suffer injuries, such as the ones listed above, is one of the main reasons why the amount of children participating in competitive sports has been dropping

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