http://www.newsday.com/news/health/the-daily-apple-1.4760551/looking-at-concussions-in-high-school-sports-1.6103070
A crushing helmet-to-helmet blow. A quick whipping of the head and neck
caused by a jolting hit. A devastating face-plant into the
sometimes-unforgiving turf. These are just a few of the ways high school
football athletes can fall victim to head trauma and suffer a
potentially harmful concussion.
With the fall high school sports season now underway on Long Island,
it’s essential athletes are protected from the possibility of brain
injury that sometimes accompanies head trauma. Unfortunately,
concussions in high school football are sometimes all-too-common.
Concussions occur from a violent jarring or shaking that results in a
disturbance of brain function, according to the U.S. National Library of
Medicine. Simply, the brain ricochets off the skull. While many
concussions are considered minor traumatic brain injuries, its symptoms
range from mild (confusion, headache, light-sensitivity) to severe (loss
of consciousness, convulsions, coma). And maybe even death.
“In younger players who are not as muscular, the neck muscles
supporting the head may not be as strong, which can worsen the effect of
head injuries,” said top-rated Long Island pediatric neurologist Dr.
Robin Smith. “The short-term consequences include post-concussion
syndrome -- significant, persistent and often disabling headaches which
can be difficult to treat. Other problems include difficulty with
concentration, which impacts their academic performance and mood; sleep
difficulties with anxiety and even depression. These can persist for
weeks or even months.”
Dr. Smith, who works for NRAD Medical Associates in Woodbury and is
affiliated with Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York, said
repeated concussions can have long-term consequences, including
cognitive impairment. “There is evidence to indicate that even
supposedly minor head injuries cause injury to the brain at a
microscopic level -- interruption in normal metabolic processes and
contusions (bruising) of the brain tissue,” he said.
Each year, emergency rooms across the country treat an estimated
173,285 sports- and recreation-related traumatic brain injuries,
including concussions, in people age 19 and younger, the Centers for
Disease Control reports. Of those reported injuries, 55,007 are related
to football.
While those at the helm of Long Island‘s football and athletic
programs, recognize that concussions are an inevitable risk,
preventative measures have been put in place.
“The safety of all our student-athletes is paramount,” said Tom Combs,
Suffolk’s Section XI Football Chairperson. “Unfortunately, concussions
are a part of all sports, including football. Through proper equipment,
techniques and knowledge of what a concussion is, the players are as
safe today as they have ever been.”
Patrick Pizzarelli, Nassau County’s Section VIII football coordinator,
said though there’s been an increase in reported concussion injuries, he
attributes it to a higher level of awareness and education among
coaches and parents.
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association’s aggressive
approach to increase concussion awareness started on July 1, 2012 when
it initiated the Concussion Management and Awareness Act, requiring all
public and charter schools to comply, beginning with the 2012-13 school
year. The mandate requires coaches, physical education teachers, nurses
and athletic trainers to complete an approved course on concussion
management, and sets standards for the care of athletes who have
suffered even minor brain trauma.
“There have been rule changes, [such as] not using your head to block
or tackle,” Pizzarelli said. “Also, athletes are taken off the field if
suspected of head trauma. I believe we are ahead of other areas in the
country.”
The state requires athletes that have suffered head trauma to remain
out of play for 24 hours. Dr. Smith said he requires his patients to be
symptom-free for approximately one week before he clears them for return
to sports.
“There is a rare and somewhat controversial entity of second-impact
syndrome where the athlete has a concussion and then returns to play
while still symptomatic, and sustains a second -- apparently minor --
head injury,” he said. “This leads to a cascade of events with swelling
of the brain and sometimes catastrophic consequences, and even death.”
Moving forward, Dr. Smith offers proactive advice for high school
football programs and the further recognition of concussions: “From a
public health point of view, it’s important to recognize concussions --
in terms of the frequency -- so that the scope of the problem can be
identified and also to enable further studies into the long term
consequences,” he stated. “[But] athletes with recurrent concussions
should seriously consider not participating in contact sports.”