Marc Martinez
Concussions in Football
Throughout the past decade, the spotlight has really focused on concussions in the game of football. This is due to the increasing amount of short and long term health complications athletes at all levels are continuously facing. Today’s athletes are constantly being pushed to hit harder, run faster, and lift heavier; however, the pressure put on these athletes to perform day in and day out can often take its toll when you add up the number of hits these players are taking each week.
“No guts, no glory” is a saying displayed throughout locker rooms across the nation, but are the long-term health effects really worth all the glory in the end? While many outside critics see this as a risk, these players are being paid to take the NFL and those in the medical field believe that changes and precautions should be made to help better protect these athletes, their careers, health, and their future. “The National Football League, facing a class-action lawsuit from hundreds of former players regarding head trauma, is dedicating large amounts of funding to research the problem, and helmet manufacturers are frantically searching for the innovation that will best protect players from the dreaded concussion”.1 Concussions need to be brought to the attention to all of those involved in sports medicine; this includes informing athletes of these risks and signs to look for after sustaining the injury. With this being said, many changes have been and are being made in the game of football.
Some improvements may be:
- pre-health examinations
- innovative helmets
- implementing new rules and guidelines
“Ensure that the helmet is fit in accordance to the requirements for that particular sport. Reports show that only 15-20% of all helmets are fit correctly each and every time”.2 These can all help and solve many of the concussion issues in today’s game.
References:
- Polnerow, D. (n.d.). NU Writing. Retrieved February 03, 2016, from http://www.northeastern.edu/nuwriting/solving-footballs-concussion-problem
- Tips on Concussion Prevention. (n.d.). Retrieved February 03, 2016, from http://www.orthonc.com/concussion-clinic/tips-concussion-prevention
Orthopaedic Specialist of North Carolina
I like your suggestions and especially at the Varsity and Sub-Varsity level are they very helpful. Helmet fit is an easy way that we as coaches can insure that our player's health is protected and it is worth the time to fit every player properly.
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