Concussions

Today, many professional, college and high school athletes throughout our country suffer from a common injury. It is an injury with serious side effects that can permanently change their lives. This injury is a concussion. Concussions are a constant threat in the game of sports. Coaches and athletes were under the assumption that a head injury that didn’t require a trip to the hospital could be ignored. We have been raised in a culture that celebrates hard knocks as a rite of passage, we don’t think twice about the bandages around our heads. (Carroll and Rosner 11). According to the Disease Control and Prevention Center, there are an estimated 1.6 to 3.8 million sports related head injuries in the United States each year. With the increasing number of concussions, the issue is relevant in today’s society. Concussions are a traumatic brain injury. In order to understand this growing issue, we need to become aware of what a concussion is, the testing and treatment that is used and the lifelong effects that concussions can cause. It is important for athletes to know this vital information about concussions in order to keep safe.
“Concussion derives from the Latin word “concutere” which means to shake violently” (Cantu and Hayman 5). According to mayoclinic.org, “a concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that is caused by a blow to the head or body, a fall or another injury that jars or shakes the brain inside the skull”. The brain floats in cerebrospinal fluid inside the skull. During a sudden abrupt blow to the head, the brain bounces against the sides of the skull. Damage happens when your brain hits the skull because the skull is rough on the inside instead of smooth. This damage can alter the brain cell st...

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...f play from elementary to the professional athlete is at a risk for a concussion. Competitors are becoming bigger, faster, and stronger, which lead to more forceful collisions. It is important for an athlete to understand what a concussion is, testing and treatment used, and the life long effects concussions can lead to. Over the last decade, concussion awareness has increased dramatically to help protect the players. Coaches, parents and athletes have many resources today were they can learn about this traumatic brain injury. There are also tests that are used to help athletes return to play safely. It is important to stay informed about concussions because they are impossible to prevent and can have life long physical and mental effects. One concussion can altar an athlete’s life or their families. No game is more important than the health of an athlete.