Concussion+Assessment,+Policy,+and+Prevention+in+High+School+Sports

== I. Description of Problem or Issue Until recently, concussions in high school sports have been improperly handled on all fronts. It was not so long ago that a sports culture steeped in the ideals of "bucking up" and "fighting through it" were also improperly educated in the severity of concussions. However, what exactly can be done? The questions for which answers exist, tentatively if nothing else, are thus; 1. What is the protocol for how concussions are **reported** ? How often do concussions go **unreported** and why? 2. What technological advances and precaution are being taken to **prevent** concussions? 3. What **policies** are being put in place to monitor league rules implemented to avoid concusions while still keeping true to the sport? 4. Are concussions being properly ** assessed? ** How?

//**II. Research Summary**//
__**Michael Chang's Research:**__ Sports are a great way for teens to stay healthy while learning important team-building skills. But there are risks when it comes to "pushing the limit" or even going beyond that. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, there are an estimated 300,000 sports-related concussions annually in the United States. Since concussions are so prevalent across High Schools in the U.S., it has now become a major public health concern. But what is being done to minimize and prevent the prevalence of concussions? Specifically, what policies or laws are being enforced? Well due to the high rate of concussion injuries in HS sports, the CDC (center for disease control and prevention) launched their safety program "Heads Up" to further prevent injuries in youth sports, specifically concussions. In short, CDC has created free tools for youth and high school sports coaches, parents, athletes, and healthcare professionals that provide important information on preventing, recognizing, and responding to a concussion. In my research, I explore further into the rules, regulations, and policies that are being implemented. __**Derek's Research Showed:**__ Society has become much more aware of concussions and their danger in the past few years. However, there is still a struggle to properly educate athletes and coaches on the danger of concussions as well as common symptoms. A study done in Wisconsin found that nearly fifty percent of concussions in the region went unreported over the course of a football season. The reasons for the unreported concussions varied, but were all insufficient excuses. Athletes were either unaware of symptoms, ignored their symptoms in order to play, or did not think they could harm themselves after already being concussed. Student athletes who are educated on the risks and symptoms of concussions are more likely to report their concussions than those who have not been given the proper education. A study done earlier this year on 200 student athletes showed that the students who had received prior education on the risks and symptoms of concussions were twice as likely to report a possible concussion. In many regions it has taken tragedies such as students deaths to make the schools and players realize the true danger of post concussion syndrome. In 2004 studies concluded that approximately seventy five percent of concussions were going unreported. Since then that number has decreased thankfully, but as long as playing through injuries is rewarded and players need to defend their starting spot concussions will go unreported. Sports will always come with a risk of concussions, but as long as they are reported the athletes future health will not be at risk. Steve Connors' Research: Until recent findings of the extensive numbers of concussions that high school athletes were receiving, the general public was not aware of the short and long term damage caused to the brain. But research has shown just how dangerous and debilitating multiple concussions can be to the human brain. Many measures have been implemented at the pro and college levels of various contact sports, but these efforts are much more far and few at the high school level. Regulations have been implemented from the high school level all the way up to Congress in some states, enforcing exactly when concussed players can return to the playing field. Advances in technology, such as the development of football helmets that contain airbag-like structures to absorb blows to the head, are effective in reducing the number of concussions, but this high-end equipment is often too costly for high schools to outfit their entire teams. What almost all the articles agreed on was the fact that in contact sports like football, concussions are inevitable. No matter how safe the technology and equipment becomes, certain hits to the head are still going to concuss athletes, and unless certain sports are banned completely than it is an issue that the public is going to have to deal with. There are, however, certain precautions that can be put in place in the hopes of preventing future concussions at the high school level. By making student athletes more aware of the symptoms of concussions, and educating the coaching staffs on how to properly evaluate injured players, schools can greatly reduce the chance of concussions. Also, by making student athletes sign pledges to not hide any injuries they believed to have suffered, the risk of players suffering multiple-concussions also drops. All in all, the best way to approach the problem of concussions in high school sports is to teach the game in a safer manner at the youth level, so when the athletes do get to high school their techniques and the way they play their sports will not allow such an abundance of concussions.
 * __Daniel Joseph Murray's Research:__**

My research question was that despite proper concussion assessment being fairly new to the world of sports, are concussions being assessed properly and how? What I found through my research was the we have come a long way in a short amount of time in regards to concussion assessment. In my research I found that the assessment begins at the very suspicion that a player received a concussion. Pre-assessing the concussion in order to make that call include looking for specific symptoms (slurred speech, confusing, etc.). However, once the call is made there are two validated systems by which a physician can make a rapid diagnosis of concussion. These are known as the Maddocks questions and the Standardized Assessment of Concussion. Such abbreviated testing paradigms are designed for rapid concussion diagnosis on the sidelines, and are not meant to replace comprehensive neurological testing, which may detect subtle deficits that can persist beyond the acute episode. Further, although such tools may be used by non-medically trained individuals to suspect a diagnosis of concussion, it is recommended that a mandatory medical examination follow this provisional diagnosis as soon as possible. Using these procedures provides a national standard for assessing potential concussions at ground zero, so to speak, and provides doctors and neurologists with at least some information in regards to the severity of the concussion before even seeing the player should they need to be taken to a hospital. Every advantage in assessing the damage done and preventing further damage is of the utmost importance The interesting thing about concussions, is that there is no "cure" and the player must be closely monitored until the concussion symptoms have fully subsided. My research made it abundantly clear that the assessment of the injury is not complete at this point. Players must be monitored and evaluated in terms of progression and regression in order to properly treat the concussion as well as possible and make decisions about the players future in sports based on the projected long term effects and possible effects of the concussion. Through my research I came to realize that the most integral part of a successful assessment lies with the first responders and their level of qualifications in handling such situations. Concussions cannot be properly assessed without qualified personnel making the calls. It is important that schools have highly qualified trainers on hand in order to administer the SAC or Maddocks questions as well as react after the fact as to the best course of action for the player whether that be a trip to the hospital or simply some time off from game play in order to self assess and report back. All in all recent standardization of first response concussion assessment is a huge step in the right direction for proper care and attention with brain injuries. The fact that the long term effects of a single concussion as well as the recognition of the fact of how further concussions could leave players with possibly debilitating brain damage are now full understood, long term assessment and health projections are more accurate than ever before.

I. Present slideshow covering each research question


====II. Split the class up into groups of two and pass out SAC tests to the class so they can get a feel for the kinds of basic questions the test is made up of which should exemplify the severity of concussions as well as provide interesting insight into the concussion assessment process.====

IV. //**Visual Representation**//
=Mind Map=

V. Research Questions and Reference Summaries
= =
 * || **Research Question** || **Researcher** ||
 * 1. || What are the policies/ laws being implemented to minimize concussion injuries? || //Mike Chang// ||
 * 2. || @What are high schools doing to prevent future student athletes from becoming concussed? || //Steve Connors// ||
 * 3. || [[file:Derek Habershaw Annotated Bibliography.docx|How often do concussions go unreported and why?]] || //Derek Habershaw// ||
 * 4. || Are concussions being properly assessed? || //Daniel Murray// ||