Recently the world of professional football has made a strong push to address the issues of the prevention and treatment of head-related injuries, while also are making a stringent effort to change the culture surround the topic. If and when this effort will follow the familiar trickle-down pattern to the youth leagues has yet to be determined.
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Such statistics have folks such as Dr. Anna McKee, a leading researcher in the area of the long-term effects of brain injuries and a member of the group studying former Chicago Bear Dave Duerson's brain, pushing for changes at all levels.
One recent change has been in the area of safety equipment, specifically the helmet, something Dr. William Cook, the managing physician at New River Valley Pediatrics, calls a "key" is preventing concussions.
Riddell, the official helmet supplier of the NFL, has been at the forefront of lobbying for better federal regulations regarding helmets in youth leagues, having spent $80,000 in the first quarter of 2011 pushing for such legislation.
Riddell also boasted the top-rated helmet according to the recent researched published by Virginia Tech. Its "Revolution Speed" helmet was the only helmet to receive five stars in the university's studies.
Across town this particular change has begun to tickle down as Blacksburg's Parks and Recreation Department has begun the process of replacing older helmets with more advanced versions.
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| Blacksburg's upgraded helmet verses its old one. |
Of course better helmets are just one aspect of the changes Lloyd believes will trickle down to the youth level.
As of July 1, 2011 each local school division in Virginia will be required by law to develop and distribute specific guidelines for how to deal with sports-related concussions at the middle and high school levels, including the identification of them. Schools will now also be required to bench any student with concussion-like symptoms until he or she has been cleared by a licensed health professional.
Blacksburg's youth league guidelines nor the overall guidelines used by the five different rec departments which make up the New River Valley's youth league contain the word "concussion" or provide any direct guidelines in how to handle them. However both Lloyd and Greg HolBrook, Assistant Director of Radford City's Recreation Department, point out that athletes who suffer head injuries are not allowed to participate in practice or game activities until they have official been cleared by a doctor, just as they would with any injury.
But the treatment of a concussion may be far less critical and far less difficult than the identification of the injury.
Dr. Cook believes identifying a concussion can be very difficult because the "vast majority walk away with very little change," leaving coaches and medical staff dependent on player feedback opposed to observable symptoms. He points out that in the past the loss of conscientiousness was used as the clear sign of a concussion, but we now know that to only be true about 10% of the time.
Dr. Cook also emphasizes the critical nature of the identification process. He believes it is "relatively unlikely" a young athlete suffers long-term effects from a single concussion, but rather it is the repeated blows to an athlete who is not fully recovered that result in the most severe problems.
So how well equipped to identify these problems are coaches and volunteers at the youth level?
According to Holbrook, a portion of its coaches preseason meeting is devoted to having an EMT speak with them regarding various injuries issues, including concussions, while Lloyd admits that Blacksburg currently provides no specific training on the topic for coaches or volunteers.
Both groups do have trained medical staff on hand during games and Holbrook insists that Radford's groups also have EMTs "on call" during practice times.
Coaches and staff may not be the only ones able to provide a helping hand in the identification process on game day.
One aspect of the new Virginia High School League rules is the empowering of referees to remove a player who they believe is demonstrating symptoms of a concussion from the field.
This level of awareness should benefit the youth leagues in the New River Valley which, according to their handbook, require two "currently certified H.S. district officials" for each Junior (9 to 10-year-olds) and Senior (12 to 13-year-olds) league contest and at least one for each Mite (7 to 8-year-olds) league game.
As the subject of concussions becomes an increasingly hot topic, Lloyd believes a required level of awareness for those supervising will increase as well. But what about by those participating?
The voluntary level of information regarding concussions requires that players be honest about what they are feeling, something which Dr. Cook think can be a challenge for young players who don't talk about what they are feeling for fear of being taken off the field. He believes the serious nature of these "dings" must be communicated to the players.
Blacksburg has taken a step to do just that.
Though there is no mention of the word, "concussion" on any of its literature to parents or athletes, they do require a separate form be filled out and signed by the parent and the student regarding helmet safety. The form brings a level of awareness to the issues by including the warning "severe brain or neck injury, including paralysis or death" are possible.
Spearheading such efforts for awareness is the massive amount of attention the subject has drawn from the media, such as the Today Show's interview with former NFL player turned surgeon, Mark Adickes, on the topic in August 2010.
The push for awareness among youth has even bled into the world of video games, with 2012 version of the famed Madden football series providing all new scenarios and commentary pertaining to the topic of head injuries.
With concussion awareness in the beginning stages of trickling down to the youth level, a parent may very well ask at what age is it safe for his or her child to begin participating.
Dr. Cook offers that while there is no clear age, with the proper degrees of protection and supervision it is reasonable for children to play full-contact football at a young age, competing against other children of similar ages and weights.
Until legislation is passed enforcing such policies, it appears it's ultimately up to the parent to ensure such precautions are taking place.
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