Archive | November, 2010

Austin Trenum, What His Mother Wants You To Know

30 Nov

I recently ran a story about Brad Evans and his untimely death, knowing this was not the only person or family that has suffered from such horrible things.  What I didn’t know was that there are families that want their stories told.  Let me preface by saying that I am just a guy who has devoted his spare time to raise awareness about concussions and their lasting effects, just ONE guy and I was utterly floored and brought to tears by an email I received today, the sender was Michelle Trenum, mother of Austin Trenum who also ended his life prematurely on September 27, 2010.  Austin had been diagnosed with a concussion sustained in a game the previous Friday.  Here is Mrs. Trenum, a grieving mother’s email to me;

I saw your blog posting on Brad Evans.  Our son, Austin Trenum,  received a “mild to moderate” concussion on September 24, 2010 at his football game.  Less than 48 hours later, our beautiful, smart, funny, happy, athletic, talented son took his life suddenly and spontaneously.  There was no warning, no depression, no mental health issues, no drugs or alcohol issues, no divorce or financial issues, no trouble with friends, no trouble with school, no fights or breakups with girlfriend, etc.  We found out about Brad Evans the day after it happened when the press contacted us noting the similarities of the two boys.  We were not up to speaking to the press but a friend who represents the family did call down there.   The reporter down in Fayetteville who’d personally interviewed Brad’s family and friends and they all said that everyone said the same thing about Brad:  that there was no reason and that he was excited about his future.  That sounded so familiar to us.

We know with every fiber of our being that Austin would never have taken his own life.  He was too well adjusted, happy, and so excited about college.  He was making plans for that Sunday evening with his girlfriend, Continue reading →

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Good News From Minnesota

30 Nov

The professional sports in the state of Minnesota received good news on two fronts today in terms of players out with concussions.

Minnesota Wild player Pierre-Marc Bouchard will return to the ice for the first time since the 2008-2009 season.  Bouchard has missed over a year due to post-concussion symptoms and finally has been given the clearance to play.  According to his agent and TwinCities.com, “Butch is back,” and “It’s official.”

Also in the Twin Cities, the Twins first baseman, Justin Morneau proclaimed that he will be ready to resume baseball come this spring.  Morneau has been out of baseball since July 7th when he took a knee to the head sliding into second base.

“There’s not a doubt in my mind I’ll be ready for spring, especially with what I’ve done this week and how it’s reacted and how I’ve felt,” Morneau said. “That’s something that hasn’t even crossed my mind.”

“Two months ago I couldn’t have come out and sat for that long and signed,” he said. “It’s come a long ways. It’s a lot better. It’s not all the way there yet, but it’s close.”

LINK

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Concussion Effects More Widely Known

29 Nov

Every Tuesday and Wednesday, for the five hours total for which a school district gets reimbursed by the state, a Southmoreland High School math teacher brings books, coursework and specialized instruction to the Mount Pleasant home of Gaige Pavlocak, 15.

Gaige, despite recent improvements in his symptoms, health and outlook, has been academically exiled to his home for more than six weeks because of the post-concussion effects still lingering from a helmet-to-helmet collision on the third day of high-school football camp.

That was Aug. 18, 101 days ago.

Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette opens up his article today about concussions on the youth. Pennsylvania is a good place to read about concussions and school-aged kids, as it is where the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is, the home of Dr. Micky Collins and the ImPACT program. The northeast in general has been much quicker to adapt and adopt (Washington state not included) changes necessary to the well-being of adolescents across the board.

One such novel idea and program is BrainSTEPS (Strategies Teaching Educators, Parents and Students), a homebound educational system provided by the state, for those suffering from traumatic brain injuries. Although the program was initially set forth for severe (coma-like) injuries to the brain, a majority of assistance is given to those that have been concussed.

We have students who have never lost a second of consciousness who are doing far worse in school than students who were in a coma for a day or two, those considered severely, traumatically brain injured,” Mrs. Eagan Brown said.

A very good article that I encourage everyone to read, especially those involved in teaching our youth. Resistance is not needed in this area however, we see that on a daily basis.

LINK

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NHL Concussion Report 11/29

29 Nov

This is the list of current players on the injured list for concussions or suspected head injuries (^=new);

  • Matt Beleskey, ANA
  • Kyle Chipchura, ANA
  • Marc Savard, BOS
  • Raitis Ivanans, CAL
  • Peter Mueller, COL
  • Kyle Cumiskey, COL
  • Kyle Quincey, COL
  • David Koci, COL (broken jaw)
  • Pierre-Marc Brouchard, MIN
  • Matthew Lombardi, NAS
  • Bryce Salvador, NJ
  • Jack Hillen, NYI
  • Ian Laperriere, PHI
  • Kurt Sauer, PHX
  • David Perron, STL
  • Simon Gagne, TB

For the first week all season we have not added any new concussions to the list, the count is still 35…

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Executive Function

28 Nov

Research is beginning to suggest that chronic exposure and delayed recovery from TBI (concussions) is directly effecting executive functioning of the brain. This past August, the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology published an abstract on an experiment from Finland.

Hartikainen, Waljas, et al performed executive reaction time testing, standard neuropsych tests and diffusion tensor imaging on their subjects and found that there were significant differences in scores between those that still had symptoms and those that have fully recovered. The issue and problem that presented itself is that the scores indicated trouble in executive functioning of the “still-injured” brain as opposed to the recovered.(1)

MindDisorders.com defines Executive Function as;

The term executive function describes a set of cognitive abilities that control and regulate other abilities and behaviors. Executive functions are necessary for goal-directed behavior. They include the ability to initiate and stop actions, to monitor and change behavior as needed, and to plan future behavior when faced with novel tasks and situations. Executive functions allow us to anticipate outcomes and adapt to changing situations. The ability to form concepts and think abstractly are often considered components of executive function.

These are high level abilities that influence the most basic things like attention, memory and motor functions. Along with the basics the executive functions of the brain allow each of us to adapt and perform in real life situations. Permanent or temporary deficits to the executive functioning of the brain are associated with; obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, ADD/ADHD, Tourette’s Syndrome, schizophrenia, and autism.

There has been suspicion about how concussion symptoms specifically affect the brain, this could be our first hard evidence of the executive function angle. As with previous studies, actually quantifying executive function is difficult, more research is needed and welcomed.

(1) – PubMed

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NFL Concussion Report Week 12

26 Nov

As unpredictable as the games have been in the NFL, what is becoming a trend is the amount of concussions. The nation took notice in week six after some big hits, and the league responded with more emphasis on the rules, including increases in the fines. Since then, there have been 48 concussions, leading up to that there were 45. A quick snapshot would tell you that rule enforcement is not helping.

Along the time we have been reporting this information, how we disseminate it has been tweaked, giving you the reader the most accurate picture of what is going on in this sport in terms of concussions. While analyzing the info, we have made slight changes to the player chart (put the week the injury was sustained), and with the numbers (reevaluated the preseason injuries).

Since training camp has opened there have been 108 total reported concussions. There were eight concussions reported prior to the regular season, and 7 more that MAY have occurred before the regular season, but were not reported until week one. For reporting purposes of regular season the total is now 100 (DJ Williams of the Denver Broncos get the distinction of the 100th). The following are regular season stats.

  • Incidence Rate = 14.63%
  • Epidemiological Incidence = 9.11%
  • Concussions per week = 9.0
  • Concussions per game = .60
  • Projected Concussions = 154

The following stats are for all 108 concussion;

  • Offensive Concussions = 52
  • Defensive Concussions = 58
  • QB = 8, RB = 9, TE = 11, WR = 17, OL = 7
  • DL = 12, LB = 12, DB = 32

Click on the rest of the story for the entire list…
Continue reading →

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Happy Thanksgiving

25 Nov

There is a ton to be thankful for, so much that I am sure I would forget someone or something.  I would say I am thankful for being alive, my wife, kids, being surrounded by quality people, and able to bring information that may help some person some day.

Thank you to all of you out there that visit here and provide information to this blog.

Eat a lot, enjoy football and freedom and a day off…  Be careful out there!

 

Wrestling Season

24 Nov

With the winter sports comes wrestling.  No, not rassling, but the Olympic style (actually called Folk Style) in high schools and colleges.  Some inherent risks come with wrestling, and a lot of that risk is head/neck trauma, particularly because there is no head gear.  Yes, there is ear guards but not “brain” guards.  However, in this sport you have a greater chance of significant orthopedic injury versus a head injury, but they do occur like that of a Minnesota freshman.

Mansfield suffered the skull fracture after colliding with another student during wrestling practice on Monday afternoon, according to a report on The Guillotine.com.

After the accident Mansfield was transported by ambulance to Rice Memorial Hospital in Willmar and airlifted to the Hennepin County Medical Center.

He is recovering well and doctors said the injury mainly affected his skull.  Read the entire story HERE.

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The Sad End of Brad Evans

23 Nov

YouTube Video Tribute

A promising young athlete struck down in the prime of his life, at his own hands.  Brad Evans of Hobbton High School in North Carolina ended his life with a gunshot.  A seemingly “put together” young man who had no indication of depression or impulse control issues suddenly and without explanation felt compelled to end it.  Brad was going to go to college to play baseball and possibly strive for his ultimate goal of the Major Leagues.

This was to happen after his senior season, including on the gridiron, where all the problems may have begun.  It is very important to say that there is and most likely will not be a link, but Brad suffered three concussion in a month’s time.  He  returned prematurely, and did not get a doctor’s clearance to participate.  His final concussion occurred on October 8th and required a helicopter transport to a regional medical center.

The time line and a very good narrative of what happened to this young man are at the FayObserver.com, written by Greg Barnes.

No one will ever know whether Brad suffered from CTE, or whether the repeated blows to his head altered his thinking and led him to take his own life.

Suicide remains one of the most common causes of death among teenagers.

But a mounting body of evidence – reinforced by the unlikely deaths of three promising young athletes since April – suggests that at least some of those suicides could be linked to repeated hits to the head.

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Musical Savant

23 Nov

A man in Colorado says that he became a musical savant after a swimming pool injury.  He claims that he sustained a concussion after hitting his head diving into a swimming pool, then shortly after he was able to compose and play the piano.

Is it possible?  I don’t know, but I have seen (very recently) a high school student become smarter after a concussion.  His grades improved and he reported that school was easier.  Add to that his ImPACT test was off  the charts after his concussion, as compared to his pretest.

VIDEO HERE

The musical savant recently went to the Mayo Clinic and had his brain analyzed.  He is the first to have this condition documented from a concussion.

NHL Concussion Report 11/22

22 Nov

This is the list of current players on the injured list for concussions or suspected head injuries (^=new);

  • Matt Beleskey, ANA
  • Kyle Chipchura, ANA
  • Marc Savard, BOS
  • Raitis Ivanans, CAL
  • Peter Mueller, COL
  • Kyle Cumiskey, COL
  • Kyle Quincey, COL
  • David Koci, COL^ (broken jaw)
  • Ladislav Smid, EDM^
  • Pierre-Marc Brouchard, MIN
  • Matthew Lombardi, NAS
  • Bryce Salvador, NJ
  • Jack Hillen, NYI^
  • Ian Laperriere, PHI
  • Kurt Sauer, PHX
  • Carlo Colaiacovo, STL
  • David Perron, STL
  • Simon Gagne, TB
  • Mike Knuble, WAS^ (face)

The count is now 35…

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Week 11 Live Concussion Blog…

21 Nov

Once again we hope that there are not many to report, but there will surely be some.  Currently we are four concussions shy of 100 since training camp opened (see here), and I would like to be on top of it today.  However, I cannot do that without the help of many eyes and ears, so I am calling for your assistance.

You can either comment here or tweet to @concussionblog if you have any information.  There are some ground rules;

  • Reported by team
  • Reported by media
  • Player knocked out (but we all should know that NOT being ko’ed still can mean concussion)
  • Player uneasy on feet
    • Notify us of: team, player, position, quarter, return status

That should get us started, thanks for the help!!!

==============11:51

Pregame mode for me, tuning into RedZone, with my Broncos off, my fantasy teams can get the full attention…

==============2:52

I have not seen nor heard of anything this week, I am sure we will learn more after the games.

==============9:13

Ellis Hobbs takes a shot to top of head, obviously lost control of his body and was “KO’ed”.  Reporting movement in extremities, but the fact that he was still prone 4 min. post indicates serious injury.

New Invention….V2

19 Nov

I don’t promote things here, but what I do is create discussion and thought as it relates to head injuries.  I recently saw in Sports Illustrated a quick blurb on something called the V2, a new equipment invention.  Instead of trying to explain it myself, I went to the source, Dr. Todd Aaron.  I felt it would be best described in his words, so I had him compose a post that I could publish.  And here is his unedited work;

I created the V2 Prototype Concussion Reduction System when my daughter suffered a concussion in an equestrian accident. I vowed that I would find a way to protect all athletes so they could safely participate in sports.

Until the V2 Prototype Concussion Reduction System, all efforts to stop concussions have been based solely on the helmet. I realized that I needed to take a systematic approach to absorbing and dissipating the forces of impact thus minimizing their potential for central nervous system damage. Therefore I created a patented one-piece helmet and shoulder pad design that transfers energy away from the head and redistributes the total force. The product was tested at impacts in excess of 100 G’s at Biokinetics and Associates in Ottawa, Canada. Independent statistical analysis confirmed that one is nearly twice as likely to suffer a concussion when not wearing the V2 Prototype as compared to those using it!

One of the added benefits of the V2 Prototype is that the modifications to the current state of the art are minimal. There is no need to create a new helmet technology or a new shoulder pad system. The V2 can drive down the incidence of concussions as well as keep the standard aesthetic that so many players are unwilling to give up. In fact we have even had player feedback that the V2 would make them look even cooler!

My unique approach to concussion reduction also includes my unique position on concussion causes. I believe that I am the first Physician/Inventor to link the concussion mechanism of injury to Shaken Baby Syndrome

I don’t believe that the commonly accepted theory of Coup-contrecoup adequately describes the pathology we are now seeing.”  Coup-contrecoup is a macroscopic description first proposed by a French surgeon describing brain injury after blunt trauma…this theory is nearly 250 years old and only minimally describes the associated brain injuries.  Chris Nowinski and his group out of Boston have shown that the microscopic brain pathology found in people suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) is found diffusely throughout the brain, not just on superficial and opposite areas that Coup-contrecoup proposes.  In fact the brain damage in CTE is nearly identical to that seen in Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Many people have described the brain as a gelatinous substance, which is easily shaken and damaged.  In reality the brain is not as dense as is jello, but made of different density cell types which develop their own momentum when rapidly decelerated causing through and through axonal shearing and damage. It is this physician’s belief that a more proper name for the epidemic of concussions seen in contact sports would be more appropriately called “Adult Shaken Brain Syndrome”. This too would explain why helmets alone are only minimally able to protect the wearer from concussion causing injury.

Dr. Aaron is a practicing physician in Philadelphia. He is boarded in Internal Medicine and an elected Fellow of the American College of Physicians. He is also the US Patented Inventor of the first systems approach to reducing concussion risk in contact sports. See Revolutionarysportsgear.com

I think it is great that Dr. Aaron is thinking outside of the box, but as with most inventions; money and research are the biggest hurdle.  I hope that Dr. Aaron can fine tune this and get it into the real world to see if there are positive impacts in the concussion realm.

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Girls Basketball…Danger-Danger Power Ranger

19 Nov

Picture Labeled for Reuse

Last night we had our second girls basketball contest of the winter season and it was a VERY, VERY busy night!!!  First, some back story on my experience with girls basketball as an athletic trainer…

This sport is extremely physical.  In all my years covering girls high school basketball (11), I’ve observed there are more bodies on the floor and bumps and bruises than any other winter sport, wrestling included.  I have no idea why it is like that, but this sport lends itself to a high rate of concussions.  In fact, I had four last year, which equals what we had in football this year.  I also have been dealing with an athlete that sustained a concussion last January, still has symptoms and has yet to return, which is my second such long-term concussion issue in four years.

Back to last night, we (my A.T. student, two high school observers and I) were going through the routine of the JV game when a previously-concussed athlete that had been cleared by a physician (AGAINST MY ADVICE) was warming up for the second half, and a ball hit her head.  Most individuals that get hit in the head by a ball would just get mad and brush it off, but not this one.  She crumpled to the floor, dazed and upset.  We took her to the training room for evaluation, and she would not return (we will get back to her later).

Double Dribble

While my students were observing her in the dark training room, I was back on the floor covering the game, when no more than 5 minutes later a player was dribbling up the court and was tripped and her head bounced off the court.  She grabbed her head and was writhing in pain.  I got to her side and she had tears in her eyes and a dazed look.  After calming her down, she reported just a small headache while sitting on the court, but she was not acting like herself.  We stood her up and like a cornstalk in the wind, she wobbled back and forth.  She was ushered to the dark training room for observation as well.

By this time our resources were strapped.  Good thing I had student observers, as they were put in charge of watching them, (as you could guess, these high school students are well versed in concussions, and working with me they get daily homework about this injury) and if they changed demeanor they would contact me or my college student.  We were not in the training room because of paperwork, finding parents, or covering the game still going on.  Then chaos knocked on the door.

Dads

The phone rang, and it’s from a parent at the junior high just across the parking lot, and he reports a girl on the floor with a head injury (you can see our community is becoming so VERY responsive to this issue).  Continue reading →

NFL Concussion Report Through Week 10

19 Nov

After some tweaking of information gathering, I am making some changes to the Concussion Reports.  There will no longer be a listing on Saturday of the concussion list and their status for the games.  Rather, I will be putting all the information in the Concussion Report to appear on Fridays.  By making this change I feel that I will have a more comprehensive list.  The change was made in response to my feelings that some concussions are being missed by the NFL Official Injury Report, and that the reporters of the NFL are doing a great job of finding information.  Players are not listed on this list unless there are corroborated reports of concussion.  Now for the information…

  • Since Training Camp has opened there have been 96 concussions
    • 48 concussions on offense, 48 on defense
      • By Position; QB (8), RB (8), TE (10), WR (16), OL (6), DL (9), LB (11), DB (28)
      • The exterior players (WR/DB) make up 45.8% of concussions
      • Interior players (OL/DL) make up 15.6% of concussions
  • 7 players (Maurice Leggett, Jay Thomas, Freddy Keiaho, Mike Furrey, Hunter Hillenmyer, Darcy Johnson and Ben Hamilton) have been placed on Injured Reserve due to concussion
  • There have been 88 concussions during the regular season
    • Average of 8.8 concussions/week
    • Average of .58 concussions/game
    • 150 projected concussions at seasons end
    • Incidence Rate (# concussions/average players in NFL/week) is 14.17%
    • Epidemiological Incidence (# concussions/all players a.k.a. 53 man roster) is 8.82%
    • Clinical Incidence (# concussions/play) or chance of sustaining a concussion on any given play is 2.5%

Looking at the stats through Week 10 there are some glaring indications that some small changes could make an impact.

  1. Develop a position specific helmet.
  2. The higher the impact force (speed) the greater chance of a concussion, address rules.
  3. Investigate the impact the interior players are getting on a daily basis (sub-concussive forces) and the cumulative effects.

That is all I have for now but you can click on the continuation of this story for the full list. Continue reading →

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Pop Warner Concussion Rules

18 Nov

Looks like Pop Warner, with the help of the NFL, has created a medical oversight committee, and their first task was the creation of some head injury rules/guidelines.  I am still looking for a full press release with more details – all info I have is based on this espn.com article.  Youth athletes MUST have a note from a doctor before allowing return to play.  While this is a GIANT step in the right direction, this issue is certain to be filled with  problems purely on lack of universal access to medical professionals experienced with sports-related head injuries. More to come when I find the full press release…

Update 1:

Wow, I am impressed… there were a few things that came to mind when I read the espn.com article that I was immediately concerned about, and it appears Pop Warner did a great job with these rules.  While I still have some concerns, it is certainly a SIGNIFICANT step forward in youth athletics.

My number one concern was parents – now I know there are many great parents out there, many that would do anything for their children - but with that comes another problem.  Sometimes doing anything and everything is going too far, specifically I’m talking about two things.  1.) Parents being objective and seeing the bigger picture when their child is injured in athletics (sometimes it becomes hard to remember that this is just a game for fun).  And 2.) parents who are also medical providers can have their judgment clouded when it’s their child that’s injured.

Fortunately, Pop Warner has addressed these issues.

S3: Injured player: Once removed by reason of injury, a player shall not re-enter the game without the approval of an official licensed athletic trainer or medical professional who is not a parent/guardian of the player.

More to come.

Full Press Release

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Live Blog of SPCN TV Webinar

18 Nov

I don’t know how else to bring you raw, unfiltered thoughts other than trying to blog live.  Essentially I believe you will be seeing notes about what I am taking in.  Disclaimer: if you have not followed me until now, you will notice sarcasm and an attempt at humor…  But they will be genuine feelings and opinions.  THESE ARE MY OPINIONS AND MINE ALONE.  However if you feel that you want to express anything, please do so via the comment button.  I will be putting the information from most recent to first, you will have to scroll to see the beginning…  Here we go!!!———————————————————————————————————————

=====2:15

The panel continues, but I have to run to do my duties as an athletic trainer.  Thanks for reading and hope that you get the chance to see the webinar.  Would love to hear any comments.

=====2:14

Erb talks about rules, spearing is a huge issue, intentional or unintentional.  Athletes are bigger, stronger, faster and still growing, and the game has become more wide open.  Erb touches on mouth guards, chin straps, and officials…  Then opens up on the media….

=====2:10

Q: What role does EMS have in this issue?

A: Joe Clark, they should only be involved in the transport, spine boarding, etc.  The athletic trainers need to approach the EMT’s/Ambulance crew prior to the event.  “The athletic trainer is in control of the scene until the EMS has arrived or called onto the field.”

I need more Joe Clark’s in this world!!!

=====2:07 Continue reading →

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Webinar Today

18 Nov

If you have 90 minutes today you can register for a free webinar about concussions and youth sports.  Sports Pro Community Sports is hosting this event today at 2pm EST.

Pannelists include;

  • Congressman George Miller
  • Joesph F. Clark (Neurology)
  • Robert Erb – Schutt Helmets
  • Renaldo Nehemiah – Former NFL WR
  • Christopher Vaughn, PsyD (Neuropsych)
  • Jon Almquist, ATC
  • Amy Garcia, RN
  • Sam Mutz – Pop Warner
  • Bobbie Quinn – Mouth Guards

Register at the above jump, I intend to be in attendance and will report any findings, and interesting things.

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Remember My Rant

17 Nov

Do you remember my rant on girls lacrosse and lack of helmets?

Well apparently I was not the only one feeling like this, as E:60 ran a story about this ridiculous problem.  In the report it is said that girls lacrosse has the highest concussion rate in all of high school sports.

VIDEO HERE

Granted, there is the thought that introducing the helmet would make the game more physical and violent.  Lets be clear here, sticks and balls constantly at head level alone can cause head injuries.

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1st NBA Concussion?

17 Nov

Is Carlos Delfino the first to have a concussion in the NBA regular season? That is a good question for anyone to help us with, because the NBA is not very good at disclosing injuries. It seems as though the league has taken the NHL/Bill Belichick classes on injury information.

We will call it #1 of the NBA season.

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This Is Not A Double Post

17 Nov

Yet ANOTHER college player is finished with football during his sophomore year.  Sausan Shakerin, running back for the Utah Utes has been medically disqualified due to suffering another concussion this past week at Notre Dame.  The difference in this story is that the medical team and coach have made the decision for the player.

It is in the best interest of Shakerin, but I am worried there will be some sort of repercussion for making his decision for him.

Again from the Salt Lake Tribune, by Lya Wodraska.

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Another Amateur Call It Quits

16 Nov

Another college athlete has had to end his football days sooner than expected and again due to a (or should I say a lot of?) concussions.

Steven Thomas, a safety for the BYU Cougars, has retired from football, after conversation with athletic trainers, coaches and family. Not the way he wanted to end it, but certainly the best move. Here is to hoping his teammates don’t say what they did in Austin.

The Cougars wrapped up practice in the indoor practice facility Tuesday night, and coach Bronco Mendenhall confirmed that junior safety Steven Thomas’ football-playing career at BYU is over.
Thomas, who started the first three games of the season before suffering a concussion against Florida State, has not fully recovered from that hit, and the risk of suffering another concussion is too great.
Mendenhall said coaches and trainers met with Thomas’ family last week and the decision was made then to have him stop playing. Thomas, from Chino Hills, Calif., will continue to support the team this year as a player-assistant coach and BYU will honor his scholarship until he graduates.

Story from Jay Drew of the Salt Lake Tribune.

Thomas joins Tre’ Newton as the second reported player having to quit college football in the last two days due to head injuries.

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Under The Category of “Really?”

16 Nov

Following up on the unfortunate story of Tre’ Newton having to stop playing football due to multiple concussions, his Longhorn teammates turn in two quotes that make you say “really?!”.

“I support Tre’ but for me personally, I’d die on that field,” Williams said.

“I always go 100 miles per hour and will worry about all that health stuff 10 years from now when I’m done playing,” Gideon said. “I’m making memories now. We all knew what we were signing up for when we started playing football.”

Williams is Aaron Williams and Gideon is Blake Gideon, both defensive backs on Texas’ football team. Both of these “non-forward” looking kids have sustained previous concussions. Maybe Tre’ is the only one with some common sense in Austin? It’s great the Gideon is making memories, but if he keeps it up they will not be HIS memories, because he will not remember them.

Listen up boys, you only get one brain. Someone ought to show them some videos and news stories of athletes that have had too many brain injuries.

LINK TO QUOTES

Thanks to @catch108stchs for this story. If you have any interesting concussion related stories feel free to email them in to theconcussionblog@comcast.net or send to @concussionblog

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Bad Priorities

16 Nov

A digital photograph taken by myself, Nachoman-au via Wikimedia Commons.

A principal at the San Jose, California area high school Del Mar is under fire for making a questionable decision. An athlete was hurt, with a head injury, during a football game and emergency personnel was called. The ambulance arrived on scene and was denied access to drive on the field to the fallen individual.

Read Story from Mecury News HERE

The story broke from KGO-TV of San Fransisco and had these quotes;

Del Mar’s principal, Liz Seabury, says she was following district orders, banning motorized vehicles on the school’s recently remodeled field.

“I think it’s a failure to apply common sense across the board,” said Campbell Union High School District board member Matthew Dean.

“I think that they don’t let any ambulance go on any field at any high school games, or at any game period. I don’t think that she did anything wrong. I work in an emergency room and I don’t think it delayed his care at all,” said parent Denise Leyer.

See KGO report and TV video HERE

The second quote is telling, and appropriate in my humble opinion, but common sense needs to be used in all situations. Even if this was a broken arm, taking a bumpy ride on a gurney over 75+ yards of a grass/turfed field is very uncomfortable.

All school districts need to have a plan in place to avoid such instances as this. At our school, the rescue crew is given direct access to an injured player that cannot be removed or moved safely, and should be used on all fields. Again this is another PRIME EXAMPLE of the need of an athletic trainer who can determine if and when it would be appropriate.

Thanks to my editor and senior researcher, Mike Lutz for finding this!

Concussion Ends Career Early

16 Nov

Tre’ Newton, son of former NFL player Nate Newton, has had to retire from football. Tre’ is not in the NFL, or CFL or even the UFL, Tre’ is a student-athlete at the University of Texas. Medical consultation has suggested that he no longer play the sport he loves after multiple concussions in high school and college, the latest occurring November 6th of this year. Tre’ was in his sophomore season as a running back for the Longhorns.

It is not often we see this kind of news at such a young age, but it’s probably a good decision.

Information for this post was attained via the Associated Press.

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