Roughly 1.4 million Americans incur a traumatic brain injury each year, and one of the main activities that can lead to a brain injury is participation in sports. Understanding what resources are available to those affected by a sports-related traumatic brain injury can help to deal with the after effects of what can be debilitating injuries.
When a person's head impacts or is punctured by a foreign object, a traumatic brain injury (TBI) can occur. In some cases, there does not even necessarily need to be contact between the individual's head and an object for a traumatic brain injury to occur. In some cases brain damage can occur when the brain impacts the skull on the inside, this is usually referred to as whiplash.
A concussion is a milder form of traumatic brain injury, where full recovery usually occurs without major long term effects, unless an individual suffers more than one concussion in succession. Repeated brain injuries have a cumulative effect resulting in more severe and more prolonged post-concussion symptoms. If an individual incurs a second concussion while the symptoms from a previous concussion still persist, serious and dangerous conditions or even death can occur. This condition is called second-impact syndrome (SIS). Sports-Related Concussions – Causes and Frequency
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 300,000 people experience concussions each year from sports injuries. Most sports-related concussions come from contact sports, especially football, boxing, hockey, and martial arts. Other major causes of a large number of sports-related concussions are falls or collisions in sports such as skiing, bicycling, horseback riding, basketball, and soccer. In soccer an additional risk for concussions is "heading" the ball.
Males between the ages of 16 and 25 are the most likely population to suffer concussions due to sports. Within this group, the risk is highest at the high school level. High school students who participate in contact sports suffer about 25 percent of the 300,000 sports-related concussions that are reported each year. At the college level, over one third of football players has suffered a concussion and about 20 percent have had multiple concussions. Dangers of Multiple Concussions
Second-impact syndrome (SIS), which is a concussion that occurs while the victim is still recovering from and earlier concussion, has resulted in at least 26 deaths in the past 20 years since this condition was first characterized. Most of these victims were in high school.
While most cases of SIS and multiple concussions do not cause death, the neuropsychological brain damage they cause is significant. Many studies have shown that athletes who have suffered multiple concussions are more likely to have prolonged learning difficulties and perform more poorly on neuropsychological tests compared to people who have had one concussion or no concussions. Some the well-documented neuropsychological impairments in athletes who have had multiple concussions are:
- Reduced speed in processing new information
- Problem solving and planning difficulties Increased number of headaches
- Concentration difficulties
- Memory impairments
- Behavioral problems
Why Athletes Suffer Multiple Concussions
Factors that contribute to why athletes suffer multiple concussions are related to the ability to accurately assess severity and recovery from symptoms. For example, there are several different scales for rating severity at the time of the concussion but there is general lack of agreement on which to use. There is also lack of agreement on what amount of time should pass before athletes can safely return to sports. This is because there are not any widely accepted guidelines for assessing whether the athlete has recovered. Preventing Traumatic Brain Injury
Using proper protective equipment can prevent many cases of concussion. Helmets or other appropriate headgear should be used in contact sports, and in sports for which falling or colliding are risks (skiing, horseback riding, bicycling). Custom fitted mouth pieces may also help prevent concussions in contact sports. To be effective, all protective equipment should be properly fitted and used for the purpose in which is was designed.
Although the risk of concussion is inherent in sports participation, decisions as to what sport to participate in can help mitigate the risk of concussion. If you are concerned about a traumatic brain injury sustained while playing a sport, you may wish to contact an experienced TBI lawyer. Your traumatic brain injury attorney can help you assess your potential TBI claim and help you get the compensation you deserve for the devastation incurred in traumatic brain injuries.
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