Sports The Implications Of Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries

Concussions in Contact Sports: The Implications of Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries in Young Football Players. Marcus Grant Fanshawe College From the inches that make up a yard, to the ice that hockey players skate on; the fast-paced world of contact sports is becoming an increasingly popular area of neurological study. When a player sustains an obvious injury such as a broken arm or even a simple bloody nose, effective diagnosis and treatment can be implemented to ensure he or she returns to play in only a matter of time. The same cannot be said for injuries that manifest deep within the convoluted structures of the brain, sometimes being left untreated until a real problem begins to arise. Head injuries in the realm of†¦show more content†¦With that, it is imperative that organizations not only implement strict guidelines concerning protection, but also increase awareness of these common types of injuries in order to prevent and treat them. In addition, if young adults are most susceptible to mTBI’s, what are the potential long-term repercussions that these injuries may impose on proper development? The idea that brain injuries can arise from any kind of contact between the head and a surface is not a new idea. Panourias, Skiadas, Sakas, and Marketos (2005) infer that not only was concussion literature written by Hippocrates’ as far back as 400 BCE, but also there are many biblical mentions of individuals sustaining a cranial injury, inevitability leading to coma. Feinsod and Langer (2011) from World Neurosurgery describe a European philosopher by the name of Michel Eyquem de Montaigne, who wrote about sustaining what is now known as a concussion during the mid 1500’s, after being in a horse collision. Concerning football, until the first leather helmets came into play around the 1920’s, head injuries were a common occurrence on the field; until the mid 1940’s in more effective plastic helmets were implemented (Viano Halstead, 2011). Surprisingly, it was not until the early 21st century that studies were published urging helmet manufacturers to modif y designs in an attempt to reduce the risk of concussions. Using