Sunday, July 14, 2013

janderson99-HubPages

The tragic accidental death of a young female hockey player in Australia has highlighted the potential need for protective headgear and helmets is all sports. The ball used in field hockey is a formidable projectile.

The young promising hockey player was struck in the back of the head while playing a club game and died on the way to hospital. Helmets are compulsory for professional bicycle racing throughout the world and many countries have compulsory helmet laws for recreational cyclists. There have been many moves to make ski-helmets compulsory. Many surfers now wear helmets. There is growing concern that 'heading' the ball in soccer may lead to long term brain damage. In Australia 'soft' protective headgear is worn by many rugby players, especially children, but it is not compulsory, despite it being a contact sport. Helmets are worn by ice hockey players but not by those playing field hockey. There has been a lot of concern at the long term risks of repeated concussions for American football players who wear hard helmets. It is time to make properly designed protective headgear compulsory for all team sports where there is a risk of head injuries?


Related Articles about Sport

Football (Soccer) Rule Changes Needed to Improve the World Game

Game Intelligence - Soccer Elite Players Have It, How to Get It

Benefits of Coffee and Caffeine for Team Sports and Gym Workouts

Pre Cool for Better Performance in Games, Running, Training, Workouts and Cycling

Tips for Running with Jogging Strollers: Pros and Cons, Guides

Landing Heel First when Running Doubles Stress Injury Rates, Shin Splints, Foot Pain

Best Running Apps for iPhone, Android - Reviews, Guides, Coaching

Running Barefoot Less Energy Efficient than Wearing Minimal Shoes

Running a Marathon - What are the Dangers and Health Risks

Research published in the The American Journal of Sports Medicine has shown that younger athletes, especially female athletes, displayed more symptoms and performed worse in standard neurocognitive tests and took longer to recover from a concussion than male athletes and older athletes.

The neuropsychological method tests reaction time, memory, and visual motor-speed. The test were conducted for 141 female and 93 male players ranging in age from 8 to 24 years. Soccer players who had at least one previous concussion performed much worse on the test than those who had no prior concussion. Female soccer players who reported head injuries at emergency centers showed poorer scores for neurocognitive testing, and reported more symptoms than male soccer players of the same age group and weight range.

The research study concluded that a recent previous concussion and gender, may explain some of the differences in post-concussive neurocognitive test scores in soccer players of various ages and sex. Previous concussion and gender may also play a role in the rate of recovery from concussion in terms of test performance. These differences were not due to size, weight and BMI between genders, but may be related to other gender anatomical difference that require further detailed study.

Federals statistics in the US show that about 1.6 million players of various sports in the US suffer a sports-related concussion every year, and the numbers among college and high school athletes is growing. Federal statistics show that about 150,000 teenage athletes sustained concussions of various types on playing field from 2001 to 2005, but this figure may only be the tip of the iceberg, as it only includes those players who were taken to emergency rooms and the total number is likely to be much higher.

Previous research had suggested that girls were more prone to concussion injuries than boys playing the identical sports. The new study is one of the first to document the effect of both sex and age on a range of symptoms. The study suggests that anatomical differences may put female athletes at higher risk, particularly younger athletes. The conclusion was that young girls may need a more cautious approach after a concussion, and should be given more time to recover.

The study showed that after concussions, high school athletes performed poorer for their age on tests of visual and verbal memory, than older college athletes. Female athletes were shown to have more symptoms and showed more visual memory losses compared with male students of the same age. The cognitive impairments found in girls lasted for a longer time in high school athletes, from 10 to 21 days after concussion, which was two to three times as long as the 5-7 day period for on-going symptoms reported in college athletes.

The researchers involved in the study suggested that the risk of damage from concussion in younger athletes may be higher because their brains are undeveloped. There is also some evidence that the higher estrogen levels in girls, which may exacerbate brain injury. However, girls may also be more likely than boys to admit to injury and seek treatment. This is not to suggest that the girls did not show symptoms, but that the rate for boys may be lower because fewer of them reported to emergency centers for treatment. The actual risk rates for boys may be more similar to that for girls than the study suggests.

The findings also suggested that teenagers and younger children required a different response. The researchers said that the head and brain of a small child are proportionally larger in relation to the size of their body. This may mean that young people's heads are less steady on their shoulders. This may mean that collisions and accidental hits with an elbow or a boot during a soccer game may move the head more easily, and move their brains inside their skulls more easily causing concussions occur. janderson99-HubPages

There are three issues that need to be looked at:

  • Compulsive protective headgear to reduce the severity of head injuries
  • Revised management practices for treating and managing young people who have a concussion injury in terms of when they return to sport.
  • The male and female differences in symptoms and recovery requires further study.


  • Doctors call for headgear in football to stop brain injuries ...

    www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1413420/Doctors-call-for-headgear...

    Nov 17, 2002 Neurologists are calling for footballers to start wearing helmets similar to those ... accessory: protective headgear. ... compulsory headgear is ...


  • Ski helmets should not be made compulsory - getreading -

    www.getreading.co.uk/blogs/andanotherthing/s/2047695_ski_helmets...

    It was a tragic week last week with the death of actress Natasha Richardson following a seemingly innocuous skiing accident. It must be unbearable for husband Liam ...


  • Horseback Riding Helmets and Protective Vests for Children and ...

    www.equestriancollections.com/...cc=helmetsssafety

    Horseback Riding Helmets have come a long way ... it is compulsory for riders in all ... to wear properly fastened protective headgear which meets or ...


  • Safety on the slopes : Should ski helmets be compulsory ? - ESI ...

    www.ecoledeski.fr/de/il4-nachrichten_i12-safety-on-the-slopes...

    Homepage; ber uns . Geschichte ; Qualitts-Charta ; Die Skischulen. Verzeichnis der Skischulen; Verzeichnis der Mini-Strukturen; Verzeichnis der unabhngigen ...

  • Compulsory use of cycle helmets move is opposed This Is

    www.thisisguernsey.com/latest/2004/04/17/compulsory-use-of-cycle...

    Compulsory use of cycle helmets move is opposed. Saturday 17th April 2004, 12:00AM BST.


  • Skiing Helmets Can Help Save Lives, But Should They Be Mandatory ...

    www.torontostandard.com/.../skiing-helmets...should-they-be-mandatory

    Ski helmets can save lives. Helmets in general can, really. This is the basic function of protective headgear, and its an indisputable fact that bike helmets ...

  • Related Posts - Skiing Helmets Can Help Save Lives, But Should ...

    www.torontostandard.com/the-sprawl/skiing-helmets-can-save-lives...

    No more white powder antics without protective headgear this winter. In Nova Scotia anyway.


  • Eric Martlew - Cycle Helmets Article

    www.limebury.com/users/martlew/helmets.htm

    Eric Martlew M.P. - ... This article was written by Eric Martlew MP for a Health Magazine & describes his Private Members Bill


  • Should cycle helmets be made compulsory? BikeRadar

    m.bikeradar.com/news/article/should-cycle-helmets-be-made...

    With UK cycling minister Norman Baker nailing his colours to the mast this week with his views on helmets prompting a huge debate among BikeRadar readers we ...


  • Safe Speed Forums View topic - UTV News - Debate over ...

    www.safespeed.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&p=237862

    Last visit was: Thu May 23, 2013 15:26: It is currently Thu May 23, 2013 15:26

  • helmets to be compulsory in northern ireland? rain miles count ...

    www.rainmiles.com/archives/helmets-to-be-compulsory-in-northern...

    The Cyclists (Protective Headgear) Bill NIA Bill 9/1 ... Home; About; Contact; ... Home > articles > helmets to be compulsory in northern ireland? Dec 14 2010

  • Should Pitchers Wear Helmets? J.A. Happ Injury Revives Debate

    www.nyutusc.com/yankees/should-pitchers-wear-helmets-j-a-happ...

    Should Pitchers Wear Helmets? ... renewed discussions about whether pitchers should wear some sort of protective headgear. ... May 08, 2013 by Arizona Sports.


  • From June 1 - Helmets made compulsory - Coimbatore Live

    coimbatorelive.blogspot.com/2007/02/from-june-1-helmets-made...

    Enter Your E-Mail ID & Get Daily Newsletter! Listen Our News - Podcast

  • MP proposes compulsory helmets for under 14s road.cc Road ...

    road.cc/content/news/39124-mp-proposes-compulsory-helmets-under-14s

    Annette Brooke, the MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole, has presented a Private Members Bill to Parliament which if enacted would make it compulsory for children


  • Wiggins on cycling safety: Should helmets be compulsory?

    boards.dailymail.co.uk/news-board-moderated/10248820-wiggins...

    Briefly to answer your question, regarding how the measurements were taken to ascertain that vehicles pass closer (by 8.5cm) to cyclists when cyclists wear helmets, I ...

  • Tell Us: Should Soccer Players Wear Protective Headgear? - Sports ...

    wellesley.patch.com/groups/sports/p/rp--tell-us...1 day ago

    A new Massachusetts law may allow youth and high school soccer players to wear protective padded headbands during games.


  • Motorcyclelawyer.ca - Helmets - Motorcycle Lawyer.ca - Welcome

    motorcyclelawyer.ca/html/Article-Helmets.htm

    NEW FOR 2012 - Motorcycle Safety Helmets in British ... 2010 Standard for Protective Headgear For Use with Motorcycles and Other ...


  • Should football helmets be blamed for head injuries?

    www.multibriefs.com/briefs/exclusive/football_helmets_and_head...

    A jury in Colorado recently determined Rhett Ridolfi was entitled to $11.5 million dollars in damages for injuries. Ridolfi suffered a head injury during an August ...

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to RSS Feed Follow me on Twitter!