Anderson, R.J “Heads in the Game” Scientific America Mar. 2011: 12-20. Print
This article talks about using state of the art technology in football helmets. This technology is called Head Impact Telemetry (HIT). It consist of six tiny accelerometer sensors placed inside the helmet. The sensors record every hit the player receives to the head and is then wirelessly submitted to a computer on the sideline. These are the same sensors used in automobiles to trigger the air bag deployment. What’s great about this is that is shows every hit in real time, and the trainers on the sideline can automatically detect the severity of the injury. This is very expensive so only college football programs can afford to use this technology. Once this can be integrated into every football players helmet the game will become much safer.
Boyd, Kenny. “One too Many” Training and Conditioning Mar. 2012: 20-26. Print
This article talks about to collegiate football players that played for the University of Texas and how they both had to cut there playing careers short do to concussions. Nathaniel “Tre” Newton played running back, and Nolan Brewster played defensive back. Newton made his decision to leave his sophomore year after he received his last concussion against Kansas State University. Although he did not receive a significant hit, he still got a concussion from receiving so many concussions in his past years playing football. Nolan Brewster made his decision to stop playing his junior year against UCLA. It was different for him because he did not receive as many concussions as Newton, but he had a long history of severe migraines from hits to the head. When doctors told them that continuing to play football can cause several health complications in the future they both had to step aside from the game that they both loved so much.
Broglio, Steven P. “What Happens Next” Training and Conditioning Sep. 2010: 30-33. Print
This article talks about the treatment for a concussion after you get one, and how if you think you may have a concussion let your athletic trainer know automatically. More than half of all concussions are not reported because athletes think it is no big deal and they could deal with it themselves. You should never do that because only a trained professional can diagnose if you may or may not have one, and what are your possible treatment options. If you are diagnosed with a concussion then the most important phase of it all is the recovery. For the quickest and best recovery you need to stay away from all physical exertion. What most people do not know is that you also need to stay away from any tough mental task such as reading, testing, and solving mathematical equations. By doing so you are ensuring that you can have a fast recovery, and can return to pre-concussion abilities with no serious health risk.
Football High Bigger and Faster, but Safer? Dir. Rachel Dretzin. Frontline Productions with ARK Media, 2011. Film
This documentary covers the seriousness of concussions, and how you don’t need one hard hit to the head to receive one. By receiving constant hits to the head in practice, and in game situations it can at times be worse. The problem is that when you receive the big hit and the concussion you can get treatment for it automatically, but by receiving constant hits with less force your injury remains under the radar and when you become older is when the problems start. Studies have shown that people that receive constant hits to the head but never get proper treatment can have serious health complications such as severe depression, intense migraines, and in few cases suicide. This is why if it is extremely important that you report any unusual head pains to your athletic trainer.
Hossler, Phil. “Upgrading Protocols” Training and Conditioning May/June 2011: 21-27. Print
This article is about a world class athletic trainer who has developed a new test for concussions. It is called the Concussion Assessment and Management Portfolio (CAMP). Through this new development it allows other athletic trainers to never miss or under estimate a concussion. Since athletes have many different symptoms for a concussion, this test covers all of them through a personalized portfolio for the player. When an athlete receives a concussion he is to report to the athletic trainer everyday so he may give him the neurocognitive exam. Only when the athlete passes this exam may he return to play. The athletic trainer has complete say of what task the athlete may do. If at any point headache, or any other symptoms return he is to stop all exercise for 24hrs, and then start over again.
Mcguire, Courtney S. Mccambridge, Teri M. “Concussions in the Young Athlete: Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention” Contemporary Pediatrics May 2011: 30-46
This article talks about the estimated number of total concussions around the nation is around 3.8 million. The number one cause of concussions is in sport related activities. The sports that are most often associated with head injuries are football, hockey, basketball, baseball and soccer. The positions in sports that are at the highest risk of head injuries are the quarter back, running back, and linebackers in football. In baseball it is the catcher, and in soccer it is the goalkeeper. Children are at a higher risk of receiving concussions. The difference in vulnerability can be related to the size and shape of the children’s heads, brain water content, and children have much smaller and weaker necks then adults do. This is why children and adolescents tend are at higher risk of receiving concussions then adults.
Prentice, William E. Arheim’s Principles of Athletic Training A Competency-Based Approach New York: McGraw Hill Companies, 2006. Print.
This book covers the main symptoms to look for in a concussion and the new test that have been developed to diagnose a concussion much quicker. The main symptoms to look for in a concussion are dizziness, inability to stand on your own, migraines, and in severe cases can include loss of consciousness, and temporary memory loss. There are several tests that have been developed to diagnose concussions. The Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) is a test that is mandatory for all high school football players before the season starts; it is a computerized test that ask the players a series of questions and the computer records your answers, and records how long you take to answer each question. The Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC) have been developed to help athletic trainers determine players’ ability to return to play. The Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM) has been employed to see the trauma that the brain has taken. With the development of test like these concussion numbers have gone down, and can prevent future one from occurring.
Shors, Tracey J. “Saving New Brain Cells” Scientific America April, 2011: 47-53. Print
This article is encouraging young athletes to strengthen their brains capabilities. By doing so the chances if you receiving any head injuries while playing sports is nearly cut in half, plus can decrease the chances of having any form of dementia at an older age. It is very simple, all you need to do is just memorize a song, a movie or just a list of anything, you can make puzzles, or just by attempting to guess the number of marbles in a jar. This may sound ridiculous but recent studies made shows that by just doing these simple task, on average athletes were receiving much less head injuries of any form.