Source: www.guardian.co.tt
Story by: Asha Defreitas Asmoseley
There is nothing more chilling for an athletic trainer, watching from the sidelines while covering a game, than to see his/her athlete hit the ground floppily after taking a hit in mid-stride. In a split second, the athlete goes from poetry in motion to dead weight as if stunned by a laser, falling inertly to the ground as fast as gravity will take him, and hitting the ground with a force that causes him to bounce insensibly, only to remain there, motionless. In serious cases the athlete is completely unresponsive lying limply in a neutral position, or limbs locked spastically in front of him as a reaction to the stunned cranial nerves, jolted due to the impact and consequent trauma to the brain (you can Youtube, Javid Best Concussion for a visual). In other cases, the athlete is able to talk but not move his limbs, and other times, the athlete’s only means of communication is by blinking their eyelids as instructed by the athletic trainer, one blink for ‘yes,’ two blinks for ‘no.’ The experience is distressing for the first responder as well as the audience, as a hush fills the stadium while earnest eyes wait to see what will happen next.
Now imagine this athlete is you or your own child. A concussion, according to Wikipedia, is a derivative of the Latin word “concutere” which means “to shake violently,” or “concussus” which means “action of striking together.” A condition that occurs quite commonly in sport, in some sports more often than others, a concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury. It can be defined as, “a head injury with a temporary loss of brain function” with spin-off symptoms that can be physical, cognitive and/or emotional depending on the severity of the injury and what part of the brain has been affected. Lately there has been a tremendous push by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (Nata) to increase concussion awareness in the United States of America, particularly amongst student athletes. The goal is to educate their audience on the seriousness of the injury amongst student athletes and to ensure that proper management is applied. This is not to say however, that treating this injury seriously is not equally as important at the professional level. A concussion must always be taken seriously.
In the USA, data surrounding concussion incidents is believed to be skewed due to underreporting. This happens for various reasons, all of which lead back to the need to an ability to identify the symptoms and respond appropriately to this type of injury. In spite of that however, about 300,000 incidences of sports-related concussions are reported, annually. American sports particularly vulnerable to this type of injury include but are not limited to American football, ice hockey, skiing and snowboarding. In Trinidad and Tobago, such sports would include rugby, martial arts and boxing. High contact sports such as these and some high impact sports, like gymnastics and football/soccer, should ensure that emergency medical personnel are on-site to respond to traumatic injuries. Failing that, hospitals and ambulance service providers should be put on alert and a protocol established in the event of an emergency.
While work still needs to be done to raise awareness of concussions in the USA, in Trinidad and Tobago the situation is even more grave. Not only are hospitals and ambulance services not always notified during game time but most times, there is no one on the sidelines who is trained in Basic Life Support (BLS) or the proper spine boarding technique.
I am of the strong opinion that coaches in this country, where our resources in the sports industry are so limited, should be required by law to successfully complete a BLS certification course that is renewed annually as part of being a coach. In December, 2010 several significant milestones were set towards improving concussion awareness in the USA. The state of New Jersey signed into law the School Sports Concussion Safety Bill, making that state the leader in stringent steps to ensuring the prevention and safe management of concussion injuries amongst student athletes. The National Hockey League (NHL) in the USA issued Rule 48, banning blindside hits to the head.
This decision was taken after calculating a seasonal average of 75 concussions over four years, 50 per cent due to blindside hits. Data analysis revealed incidences of concussions according to position, which period of the game they most frequently occurred and how the injury was sustained. At the Youth Sports Safety Summit held in Washington DC, the Nata and the NFL announced their partnership to promote state-based legislation to prevent concussions among youths and encourage safe play. For quick reference, informative material surrounding youth sports concussions, you can visit the site, http://www.cdc.gov/concussion/HeadsUp/youth.html . PDF files are available to print up and keep handy.
Whether you are a parent, an athlete or a coach, make it your responsibility to be aware of the signs and symptoms of a concussion and always seek medical attention if you have any concerns.
Asha De Freitas-Moseley, A.T.C., M.S., C.K.T.P.