Concussions
By: Daniel Watson
What is a concussion?
A concussion is a brain injury caused by a blow to the brain or violent shaking of the head/body.
Symptoms
Some symptoms of concussions are:
- Headache
- Confusion
- Lack of coordination
- memory loss
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Dizziness
- Ringing in the ears
- Sleepiness
- Excessive fatigue
Field Treatment
- Remove the athlete from the game
- Send to the physician
- Romberg test: Have athlete stand on two feet and close eyes. Does he/she remain balanced?
- Tandem gait test: have athlete walk heel to toe. Is he/she able to complete without difficulty?
Hospital Treatment
- Depends on how severe, but they will usually take athlete out of play or school
Prevention
- Wearing protective gear during sports
- Buckling your seat belt
- Making your home safe
- Protecting your children
- Exercising regularly
- Educating others about concussions
Stats
- Girls have a higher concussion rate than boys do
- 50% of second impact syndrome victims die
- 15.8% of football players receiving a concussion causing loss of consciousness return to play the same day
- 400,000 brain injuries(concussions) happened in high school sports in the years 2008-2009