It was September 30th, 2004. Former Pittsburgh Steeler Justin Strzelczyk drove his Ford pickup drunk the wrong way across highway I-90 colliding head-on with a tanker truck and died on impact (Finder). Justin wasn’t on drugs or drinking(Finder). Justin had a bipolar disorder from concussions from when he played football (Finder). According to WebMD “The brain is made of soft tissue. It's cushioned by spinal fluid and encased in the protective shell of the skull. When you sustain a concussion, the impact can jolt your brain. Sometimes, it literally causes it to move around in your head. Traumatic brain injuries can cause bruising, damage to the blood vessels, and injury to the nerves” (Lava). In a short and sweet version; it is a bruise to the brain. Concussions also have different levels …show more content…
Studies show that retired professional football players showed a three-fold increase in depression in players with a history of three or more concussions (Cifu). Evidence has also been gleaned from other sports that involve head impact. Nonrandomized studies of soccer players who have had multiple minor concussions have demonstrated that these individuals performed worse on neuropsychological tests compared with a control group (Neuropsychological testing is the standard for monitoring cognitive recovery after a concussion) (Cifu).
With the increase in concussion the NFL has seen multiple “superstar” athletes retire from the game early such as, Calvin Johnson who is border line Hall of Fame numbers, Jarod Mayo who was a two-time pro bowler who should be entering in the league at his prime, B.J. Raji was a young stud for a super bowl winning team (Kurtenbach). All three athletes were 30 years old and younger (Kurtenbach). This is because the risk-reward equation for NFL players has changed dramatically, and the understanding of risk will continue to grow faster than the rewards moving forward
Concussions in the NFL have been a big topic over the years and will continue to plague the League and the Players. In fact in 2015 alone 271 players suffered a concussion over the whole season (CNN). However People don’t realize what happens to the player after they get a concussion in the NFL. Concussions change players lives after playing the NFL. As a result of concussion sustained in the NFL, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), and dementia occur.
Concussions occur daily in a life of an athlete. This can change their lives forever if they have one that is severe. They might get lucky if its minor and they can go back to playing. Concussions are very dangerous in an athletic world, because they can affect their lives even after they retire from playing that sport. These concussions can start off at any age, but the huge problem people are having is pro sports. NFL being one the biggest leagues to have these problems. There are many debates about whether the NFL are being careful enough and understanding how bad these concussions are. There are some people who are trying to help this problem become known to all. They are trying to help fix this situation. There are ways to fixing this
Concussions can cause long term effects if not treated properly. A player can recover from a concussion in a few weeks, but the lasting effects of a concussions still prove relevant. Retired players that have suffered from concussions during their careers and were not treated properly felt the long-term effects of sustaining head injuries that caused many to commit suicide, which has led to the NFL investigating their concussion protocol to keep the players safe. As the NFL uses its lead doctors to investigate and understand more about the brain it will lead to gains in the safety of athletes
In the sports world today, there are many different injuries that athletes experience and one of the most devastating injury is a concussion. Concussions can happen to anyone, in any sport, but we tend to see most concussions in contact sports (Świerzewski 1). While having an informal conversation with my dad about football, he told me it was common for athletes to receive a head injury in a game and continue to play as if nothing was wrong. While watching SportsCenter, I found that some of the greatest retired athletes don’t remember the best moments of their careers due to the lack of treatment. The worst aspect of concussions is that the symptoms can be delayed; in some cases, it’s only a headache so athletes don’t seek medical treatment. Multiple concussions over time can lead to life-threatening complications due to the damage they cause to the brain. Concussions can happen to anybody at anytime, but there is more to concussions than meets the eye.
Over the past couple of years the National Football League as well as other football associations have witnessed a rise in the occurrences of severe head trauma to players resulting in concussions. One of the NFL’s top priorities is the health and safety of their players. These NFL players bring an abundant amount of joy and excitement to their wild, raving, die hard football fans across the nation. However, these mens’ health today and for decades to come is equally if not more important than their careers that often last an average of 4 years playing football. Despite the increase in the number of concussions in football, leagues are doing all they can to prevent concussions by implementing new rules, provide new and improved equipment,
Each year approximately about 300,000 sports-related concussions are reported in the United States. The study has found out that an athlete who has suffered 1 concussion are at greater risk of suffering from another concussion. Sport-related concussion is still considered one of the main problem medicine professionals are dealing with. Research has also shown that multiple concussions have had detrimental effects on athletes participating in boxing, men's ice hockey, and men's soccer. Research on multiple concussions has been retrospective, using only posttest designs. Several researchers have suggested that the cumulative effects of repeated concussions can have long-term consequences. Collegiate football players with a history of 3 or more concussions were at 3 times greater risk for suffering another concussion compared with athletes without a history of concussion. Athletes with a history of 3 or more concussions presented more symptoms and poorer memory performance on neurocognitive testing at baseline than athletes with no history of concussion. These findings suggest that a history of concussion may place an athlete at risk for developing long-term sequelae associated with postconcussion
Sports-related concussions might just be the biggest worry for any athlete at any level. A concussion is a thing that every athlete battles over time. Everyone knows that injuries are given when it comes to sports. Especially concussions which can put an athlete out for weeks or even forever. Many student-athletes have been a great issue that can easily be resolved from thorough and informative Training. Concussions can prevent or reduced if we are if we go through concussion prevention training in high school, which is usually the starting point for most athletes. Concussion training can help athletes diagnose a concussion, treat a concussion, and to even use proper technique to prevent and minimize sports caused a concussion. Even though every athlete does not experience a concussion many people can benefit from the training that could save a life.
One of the most controversial discussions in sports today is concussions and how the athletes who play sports are being protected. Concussions in the NFL has been a constant argument over the past decade because of not only the number of players who were diagnosed with concussions but also in addition to the number of retired NFL players that reported having depression problems, drug addictions and eventually taking away their own lives by suicide. Football is know to many as “Americas game” and because of this fans live for and look forward to these hard hitting brut athletes that suit up and take the field for battle each week not knowing the facts on how concussions not only ruins the athletes chances of playing again but affects the brain
Many of these athletes, were at the pinnacle of their careers, the faces of their franchises and leagues. Troy Aikman, quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, is one great example; he suffered eleven concussions, in his twelve seasons as a pro. Another famous quarterback from the same era as Aikman, Steve Young of the San Francisco 49ers, also suffered several major concussions in his fifteen year career as an NFL quarterback. At his retirement speech, Steve Young had this to say, “ The fire still burns, but not enough for the stakes.” Young was speaking on the concussions and their potential side effects.
Concussions have been shown to be the cause of chronic traumatic encephalopathy or “CTE”, which has led to player suicides and other debilitating symptoms after retirement, including memory loss, depression, anxiety, headaches, and also sleep disturbances. “In CTE, a protein called Tau forms clumps that slowly spread throughout the brain, killing brain cells. CTE has been seen in people as young as 17, but symptoms do not generally begin appearing until years after the onset of head impacts.”(What Is CTE). This is why people are studying and trying to understand concussions fully in order to prevent and treat future ones. Concussions are very serious and shouldn’t be taken lightly which is why it has become a major topic in football. As much as professional and young athletes want to prove their toughness and continue to play, new research is proving that concussions are far more dangerous than anyone could have predicted.
Head impacts happen frequently in football, as they are in many other contact sports. Youth players, as young as 7, could sustain up to 100 impacts a season. While the long-term health repercussions remain uncertain, most of us have heard that repeated concussions, which occurs when the brain hits the skull, might increase an athlete’s risk of brain damage later on down the road. At first, the consequences might be hard to spot; but after multiple concussions, damages to brain could result in behavioral changes years down the line. This behavioral alteration is now understood to be due to impact dementia. Which a group of symptoms caused by memory loss, confusion, and personality change.
Recurrent concussions can lead to late life cognitive Impairment In retired professional football players. 50,000 head injuries result in death each year and most injuries are classified as mild traumatic. Traumatic Brain Injuries have been classified as significant, emotional, and functional disabilities. This study wanted to show if recurrent concussions lead to neurodegenerative dementing disorders, Parkinson's, Alzheimer’s, and psychiatric disorders such as depression. The patients in this study played at least 2 years of professional football but their age group varies from recent professional players to professional players before World War ll.
With the growing concern over head injuries in professional sports, athletes are now asking questions and expecting answers. Athletes now want to know what their quality of life will look like after their career as an athlete has come and gone. The present study evaluates the differences in cognitive impairment between athletes who have a history of multiple head injuries/traumas and athletes who have not had multiple head injuries/traumas. The hypothesis states that athletes who have had multiple head injuries/traumas will show more signs of cognitive impairment when compared to athletes who do not have a history of multiple head injuries/traumas. A sample of 30 athletes with multiple head injuries/traumas, and 30 athletes without multiple head injuries/traumas were selected. Athletes from both groups were asked to complete the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) as a dependent measure of cognitive impairment. The results determined that athletes with multiple head injuries/traumas scored lower on the RBANS than the athletes without multiple head injuries/traumas.
After watching the movie “Concussion,” you will see and walk away with a kind of a important and, in all likelihood, consistent worry and also anxiety attacks about the act of playing football or any sport of the fact. Given the fact that, our brains, and the known sport football (the frequently served opportunity for an important sub-concussive and concussive hits), there is a huge yet clear debate for a plausible medical crisis in the long term it was always happening but we have only just started to realize it recently.
A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury caused by a blow to the head or body falling down. In a sense any injury that shakes the brain around. Surrounded by spinal fluid your brain is a soft organ and protected by your dense skull. Now if your head or your body is hit too, severally your brain can crash into your skull and be injured. The movie Concussion, an American biographical sports film directed and written by Peter Landesmen based on the book Brain Game by Jeanne Marie Laskas. The film star in