Affects of Concussions Among Teens
Why is the Number of Concussions Increasing?
The Teenage Brain
- The brain of a teenager is still developing so teens are more vulnerable to getting concussions, than adults would be
- Teenagers take longer to recover from concussions/ head injuries than adults
- Concussions among teens have risen 16% every year
- Teenagers have weak necks and disproportionately large/heavy heads so the impact is more severe
Long Term Affects
-If an athlete experiences too many concussions their mental capacity can go down
-10% of concussions can overtake teens for months/years
-Repetitive concussions can have serious repercussions: Can lead to permanent brain damage or death
-Even a minor concussions can lead to long term damage
-Learning disorders/deficits can occur with multiple concussions
Research- What has been found and what is being studied
-High contact sports like football, boxing and hockey have higher risk of concussions
-Healthy teens usually resume normal activity within a few weeks
-Girls suffer at a higher risk than boys in similar sports, example would be soccer
-There are about 3.8 million sports related concussions per year in the U.S., among teens the number has risen 60% over the last decade
-50,000 people die, 80,000 become permanently disabled because of concussions/brain injuries
-Concussions occur more frequently than Breast Cancer and AIDS
-Brain injuries/concussions are the most frequent cause of death among children and teens
Citations:
Brain Image-
http://www.ccs.fau.edu/section_links/HBBLv2/Research/MTBI.html
Chart/Statistics Image-
http://qrc.depaul.edu/djabon/Articles/GirlsSoccer.htm
NFL Percentage Image-
http://www.opiniometrica.com/2013/02/nfl-concussions.html
Rates of Concussions Image- http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2012/10/concussions_hit_home_will_fear.html