Concussions A Common Reality

That’s right. These head knocks happen more often than you realize.

A study conducted by the Sports Concussion Management Program at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital found that 1 in 30 North Texas high school and college athletes suffered a concussion in 2008. The results were published today in a Dallas Morning News article by Karel Holloway.

That sounds like a big issue to me and one requiring further research.

Fifteen thousand athletes from 83 area public and private schools participated in the study. The number of high school and college athletes in Texas is much higher than that, meaning that the rate of concussions could be and likely is higher than what the study found.

The fact that many concussions go unreported by the athletes also affects the numbers.

Immediate Post Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) computer software was utilized for the study. Participating schools did a preseason test on athletes to compare with the results of the same tests following a possible concussion.

The test measures things such as motor skills, reaction time and ability to focus and remember, all which may be affected by a concussion but not be visibly obvious, according to the ImPACT Web site.

According to the DMN article, Mesquite ISD is one of the first school districts in the country to have a written policy for concussion management. The policy, developed by veteran trainer Bucky Taylor and gaining national attention, requires a player to be symptom-free for at least two weeks before returning to the sport. Coming back too soon, as up to 40 percent of high school players do, increases the risk for a more severe second concussion, especially in younger athletes whose brains are still developing, according to the article.

Read the full Dallas Morning News article at http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-concussions_05met.ART.State.Edition1.4b95c1b.html