A concussion is a type of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) that is caused by an impact or jolt to the head that is estimated to effect 300,000 athletes a year and is most common in sports such football and ice-hockey(7 para 2). A concussion as defined by the Journal of Family Practice can be a follows:
“1. Concussion may be caused either by a direct blow to the head, face, or neck or a blow elsewhere on the body with an "impulsive" force transmitted to the head.
2. Concussion typically results in the rapid onset of short-lived impairment of neurologic function that resolves spontaneously.
3. Concussion may result in neuropathological changes but the acute clinical symptoms largely reflect a functional disturbance rather than a structural injury.
4. Concussion results in a graded set of clinical symptoms that may or may not involve loss of consciousness. Resolution of the clinical and cognitive symptoms typically follows a sequential course Ina small percentage of cases; however, post concussive symptoms may be prolonged.
5. No abnormality on standard structural neuroimaging studies is seen in concussion.”
Symptoms and signs
According to authors Kirkwood, Yeates, and Wilson some signs of a concussion may include symptoms such as confusion, forgetfulness, inability to focus, and changes in behavior, these symptoms are divided into 3 categories, the first being somatic which has symptoms such as headaches, fatigue and low energy, some symptoms of emotional are lowered frustration tolerance, irritability, increased emotionality, and some of cognitive are slowed thinking or response speed, mental fogginess, poor concentration(7Para3). This is just a summary of some major signs of a concussion that if someone is experiencing they should seek care immediately. Those symptoms may also have many factors that contribute to their relevancy such as age and gender. These two factors can change the effects and length of a concussion as well as the recovery time. Without immediate care and the proper safety procedures, one may be vulnerable to Second Impact Syndrome (SIS). SIS is the term used to describe a condition where another concussion is suffered while one is not completely recovered from another one and the conditions can be lethal, in 1973; Schneider was the first to describe the deaths of two athletes who died after suffering a relatively minor head injury during recovery from a previous concussion. In 1984, Saunders and Harbaugh reported the same scenario in a 19-year-old college football player and coined the term "second-impact syndrome". Since then, at least 26 deaths have been attributed to SIS, 20 of them occurring in the past 10 years (2 para2). Although it is not very common it is not something somebody should want to be subject of or even take the risk of happening.
Proper Care Procedures There was a High School Basketball player named KD who was knocked backwards in a game and hit her head on the floor during a game, she was transported to the local emergency department for further evaluation and nothing irregular was found in her ct scans, a few days later she was experiencing concussion symptoms like an ongoing headaches, nausea and light headedness and went back to the doctor (6 para1). This could be completely coincidental in some eyes but to others the wrong test may not have been run or test may not have been