Kids and Concussions: The Effects of Head Injuries in Young
Athletes
The Newark Star-Ledger recently
featured a three-part series dealing with concussions and their impact on
youth
sports. In the first article, Dr. Micky Collins, a leading concussion specialist,
the assistant director of the
University
of Pittsburgh Medical Center sports concussion program and a co-creator of
IMPACT, stated, “I never appreciated how many kids have problems with this
until I started seeing 15 to 20 patients a day.” Jackie Friedman writes about a
“recipe for disaster” when she comments: “Athletes play for volunteer youth coaches
who lack medical training. High school cheerleaders compete for coaches who
have never taken a first aid course. Kids in dozens of sports at all levels
play through the pain after violent collisions rattle their skulls. Then there
are the parents, often too willing to rush their kids back onto the playing
field.”
These
alarming realities have compounded a brain injury epidemic that is crippling
young athletes in New Jersey and across the nation. In high school sports
alone, more than 400,000 concussions occurred nationwide last school year. Many
more surely went unreported. It’s impossible to know how many thousands more
occurred in youth sports from football to field hockey, soccer to softball. The
total number of children who suffer sports-related concussions could be
staggering. The range and severity of their short and long term medical issues
could be equally staggering. Memory loss, throbbing headaches, depression — are
only part of more serious medical problems that
could
threaten every aspect of a young person’s future.
The
series points out a number of concussion-related injuries in sports other than
football. New Jersey has approximated 250,000 high school athletes. 85% of the
schools have athletic trainers on staff compared to a
national
average of 42%. Even with athletic trainers present, concussions are a major
problem.
Dr.
Collins reports that “We sometimes see that the mild injuries become severe and
that severe injuries become mild. Kids who have a few symptoms, recover to play
and that’s when they get hit again. These are the kids that take the longest to
recover.” Dr. Collins urges—unequivocally— “the athlete be removed from play immediately
until he can be intricately evaluated by medical personnel. The recovery
process then necessitates a ‘constellation’ of efforts to ensure effective
recovery for young athletes. Those efforts must be prevalent in the schools—both
academically and athletically.”
The
article concludes with several
suggestions
for the recovery process:
1.
Notifying the athlete’s school of the injury so teachers and administrators recognize
the need for reduced cognitive stress.
2.
Encouraging the athlete to reduce cognitive stress at home by eliminating
text-messaging, video game play and other brain stimulators.
3.
Eliminating physical exertion until the symptoms of concussion dissipate.
Star-Ledger, Newark,
NJ, January 4-6, 2010
Player Without Hand Seeks Position on Basketball Team
Kevin Lane, a 6-11,
230 pound center is an inspiration to many athletes with disabilities. Missing
his left hand and arm below the elbow since birth, Lane, a freshman, wants to succeed
both on and off the court as he seeks a place on the Manhattan College team. He
said, “Maybe me playing with one hand inspires others to try harder toward
their goals. Or their dreams.” Lane maintained a 3.6 average in high school and
4.0 average in prep school. Lane also plans to run for president of the
freshman class and become involved in campus life. His basketball coach, Barry
Rohrssen, said “The Good Lord doesn’t give everyone everything, what’s missing in
one part of his body, he makes up for with his heart
because
that’s twice as big as
Sport Facility Sued for Eye Injury to Participant
John Demelio went to
John Franco’s indoor sports facility to celebrate his 14th birthday. While he
was taking batting practice in the batting cage, a baseball ricocheted off of a
pole and struck Demelio in the eye. According to hospital records, the fourteen
year-old youth sustained a detached retina. Demelio brought suit against the Brooklyn
Indoor Sports Center, Inc. operator of the Indoor Sports facility for the
injury to his eye.
The
defendants made a motion for Summary Judgment of Dismissal based on the primary
assumption of risk.
At
the time of the injury, John Demelio was five feet ten inches tall, weighed 150
pounds, had played organized baseball since he was seven or eight years old and
had been using batting cages since he was 10. John had used the defendant’s
batting cage on numerous occasions since he was 10 or 11. The plaintiff,
however, alleged specifically that the defendant was negligent: in
unnecessarily creating an enhanced risk to batters by failing to properly and adequately
pad the metal pole of the batting cage, failing to hang netting between the
batter and the pole a sufficient distance from the pole to prevent a struck
ball from ricocheting off the pole and back to the batter, failing to warn the
batter of the risk of ricochet posed by the pole, failure to provide the batter
with goggles or protective eyewear or head gear, maintaining the metal poles in
close proximity to the batter without providing the means to protect the
batter.
Demelio
stated that he was not aware of any risk that a ball he hit either on a baseball
field or batting cage could ricochet back at him after striking a fence or pole.
Dr. Arthur Mittelstaedt, a sports and recreation safety consultant, acted as an
expert witness for the plaintiff. Dr. Mittelstaedt concluded that the defendant
created a ricochet risk which would not be an inherent risk in a properly constructed
batting cage. The placement of metal poles in close proximity to and within the
plaintiff’s forward hitting radius did not conform to safe standards of batting
cage design and construction in the industry. Dr. Mittelstaedt also stated that
the defendants could have padded the poles and reduced the risks to the
customer.
The
court concluded that the plaintiff raised a trialable issue as to the
applicability of the doctrine of primary assumption of risk. The defendant’s
motion for summary judgment was denied.
DeMelio v. Playmakers, Inc., Supreme Court of
New
York, Kings County, 2008 NY Slip OP
28133,
April 8, 2008 Decided
NINE GIRLS SUSPENDED FOR SOCCER BRAWL
The
Rhode Island Interscholastic League suspended nine members of two girls soccer
teams, Woonsocket and Tollman High Schools, “for their roles in a fight that
sparked a brawl in the bleachers.” Two girls collided during play. The incident
escalated and several players began pulling hair and throwing punches. During
the awards ceremony that followed the match, spectators in the stands began fighting
leading to the suspensions. Nine players received suspensions ranging from one
to two years. The Rhode Island Interscholastic League said the punishment “shows
that fighting and unsportsmanlike conduct won’t be tolerated.”
USA Today, November 18, 2009
“Fair Play” Policies
Many school systems such as the Charlotte-Mecklenburg System (CMS)
and the
Guilford County School System (GCSS)—both in North Carolina—have
instituted “Fair Play” polices to combat eligibility violations. Under these
programs, anyone can call a hotline to report an alleged violation of
eligibility rules. Callers do not have to give their names and this anonymity
is deemed to be a key component by “Fair Play” policy proponents.
In 2009, the CMS received over 400 emails alleging rule violations
according to the Charlotte Observer, (September 8, 2009). When athletic-related
violations are discovered the offending schools, administrators and coaches are
punished. Because of budget constraints, the CMS does not provide funds for
athletic directors to monitor hotline calls. Calls to the hotline are fielded
by an athletic office and when necessary a school district panel.
CMS spent over $1 million in 2007 to investigate allegations of
wrongdoing and eligibility violations. The CMS hotline was instituted in an
attempt to address issues discovered during the investigation.
The GCSS “Fair Play” policy appears to be modeled after the CMS
System. The former CMS administrator who led the 2007 investigation is now the
superintendent of GCSS and spearheaded the drive to institute a “Fair Play”
policy in the
Guilford County School System .
Charlotte Observer, Charlotte NC, September 8, 2009
Referee Assulted: No One Charged
As a member of a losing football team was leaving the field, he
swung his helmet at the head of a referee. The official’s nose, jaw and every
other bone in his face were broken. As the official lay bleeding on the field,
no one on the team that was responsible for the injury would hand over a cell
phone so 911 could be called. A doctor who later treated the referee said that “he
was lucky that he was not killed.”
Pete McCabe, the injured official, was a substitute who did not
want to the call the game because of past incidents involving the Western New
York Cougars. Safety is always concern for officials calling the semi-pro
games. The Rochester (NY) Chapter of Certified Officials called the brutal
assault: “An outrageous, cowardly act.” The chapter plans to discuss whether
they will furnish officials in the future to the semipro games.
SODA, October 28, 2009 (Rochester, NY)
Our thanks to Gil Fried for this article.
UNIVERSITY HELD LIABLE FOR SEXUAL HARASSMENT OF CHEERLEADER
Kacie Chambers, a former Marshall University cheerleader, filed a
lawsuit against the University claiming that she
quit the squad because she was the target of sexual harassment on
several occasions. In her suit Chambers contended that the harassment included
explicit remarks, flashing and exposing breasts.
The jury awarded Chambers $25,000 for “negligent infliction of
emotional distress.” Marshall University officials
reported that changes have been made to improve the cheerleading
program.
The Parthenon, October 18, 2009
PUSHING UMPIRE LEADS TO JAIL TIME
Ronald Reed, 48, pushed an umpire during a recreational softball
game in Lima, OH. Convicted of assault on an
umpire, Reed was sentenced to 30 days in jail and ordered to stay
off recreational property for two years.
Reed’s son was playing in a softball game when he became volatile
over a call that led to his ejection from the
field. Gary Keller, the umpire, was shocked when Ronald Reed came
on the field and pushed him to the ground. Keller was pleased with the outcome
stating that “it shows people that umpires can’t be pushed around. I hope that
umpires stand-up for what
they believe in.”
Referee, November 2009