CONCUSSION CONCERNS AND MANAGEMENT IN ATHLETICS

“. . . IT’S ESTIMATED THAT IN HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL ALONE, ABOUT 1 AND 5 PLAYERS SUFFERS A CONCUSSION.”*

PART ONE

by Bill Welker, EdD

     On October 19^th, West Virginia’s senior U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, held a hearing on concussions and the marketing of sports equipment.  His mission was to increase awareness of both the dangers of concussions for athletes participating in sports at all levels, and the misleading marketing claims about concussions made by sports equipment manufacturers. 

     Rockefeller convened the hearing because much of past discussions on concussions had largely focused on the dangers of concussions at the professional level.  The truth is a significant percentage of those suffering concussions are children and high school students participating in sports, especially contact sports like soccer, football, basketball, wrestling, and hockey. 

     More recently in Shepherdstown, WV (April 12^th), Senator Jay Rockefeller chaired a roundtable discussion with medical experts, sports professionals, coaches, and parents during Youth Sports Safety Month to help raise awareness of many of the causes and impacts of concussions and head injuries in young athletes. 

     “We all have a responsibility to make sure that kids, who play sports, are as safe as they can be,” said Rockefeller.  “Many past conversations about concussions have focused exclusively on professional athletes, but we must also be fully aware that concussions affect so many of our children on the field, court, mat, or track.”  
     “This is the beginning of a science, a coordination of effort on a very serious subject,” said Rockefeller.  “We must determine the best way to educate parents and children on the dangers of concussions, how to properly identify a concussion on site, how to tell when a child is ready to play post-concussion, and how to fund getting the appropriate health-care professionals in place at West Virginia schools sporting events.”  

     Rockefeller identified football and woman’s soccer as the two sports most vulnerable to concussions.  In fact, his son had three concussions as a young football player.

     “He (my son) wanted to be a doctor, so he went to see a doctor about his concussions,” Rockefeller explained.  “The doctor said, ‘You’ve had three concussions?  Well, let’s put it this way: If you have four, don’t ever bother coming back to me.’”

      That night, Rockefeller’s son cleaned out his locker and never played football again.

     Senator Rockefeller has also vehemently questioned the integrity of companies who proclaim in their advertisements they have made concussion-proof equipment, because such claims are marketing falsehoods.

     “People get concussions.  They wear helmets, and if people think those helmets have anything to do with stopping concussions, they’re wrong,” Rockefeller said.  “There’s nothing that can solve the problem of concussions in sports.  So when companies tell you that having mouth pieces and/or helmets will eliminate concussions, their lying.”

     "There is this myth that, somehow, if you play football and you wear a helmet and you get a concussion, it's OK because the helmet -- per company advertising -- takes care of the concussion," Rockefeller said.  “They are wrong; it does not!  The only thing that the best helmet in the world does is to prevent you from having your skull shattered.”

     "You can't buy something that'll prevent you from getting a concussion. And concussions are really serious stuff."

      “Playing sports doesn’t just make kids stronger and healthier.  It also teaches the athletes important values – hard work, leadership, and the importance of working together.  I encourage everyone to tell their friends and family about how to better protect student athletes so that we can reduce head injuries, increase awareness about some false marketing of sports equipment, and make sure our kids stay safe in the athletic arena.”

     In essence, the roundtable provided an opportunity to discuss the dangers of concussions for young athletes, the steps that parents and coaches should take to protect young athletes from concussions, and the limitations of sports equipment in preventing concussions. 

    In Part Two of this series, we explore the symptoms and management of concussions.

(Editor’s Note: Dr. Welker was commissioned by U. S. Senator Jay Rockefeller IV and his staff to write a paper highlighting a more  

in-depth understanding and awareness of the impact of concussions in the athletic realm to the West Virginia and national public.)

* Reference

Solomon, GS et al. The Heads-Up on Sport Concussion, Human Kinetics Publishing, 2006.