Throughout the years of sports, the industry and the
separate sports have learned to adapt to the changes occurring from equipment
technology to treatment of injuries. As these two aspects of sport gradually
advance together, we can only hope that more things are done to protect athletes
from the rudimentary to the professional level. Specifically, the way
concussions are handled has been changing gradually as these intense brain
injuries can have devastating impacts on learning and cognitive function of the
brain. New forms of testing can be conducted online that help successfully
diagnose concussions so athletes can properly recover.
Psychology
Teacher’s Assistant Judy Gerstenblith says she would check for multiple things
if she suspected a concussion.
Use of online programs are necessary to prevent consequences from concussions.
My
high school came to a revelation that concussions were something to be
proactive about after a friend of mine suffered two concussions in a row and,
two years later, still suffers from learning disabilities. As a very involved
athlete in high school, I was very cautious about head injuries and my school
was very proactive about the issue from thereon out—we began using a very
technologically advanced program that is becoming increasingly popular in the
athletics world. We employed the program ImPACT, which is the newest and most
advanced version of online concussion testing. Gerstenblith’s explanation of
what she would check for if she suspected a concussion is exactly what online
testing methods like ImPACT are trying to simulate. Developed by Dr. Mark
Lovell at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the system is the most
widely used online concussion testing system.
Impact works by testing athletes before and after a
suspected concussion.
According
to the ImPACT Test’s website, it is the most scientifically validated
method of testing for concussions. What I recall about taking the test is at
the beginning of the season, my entire team was stationed at computers and the
test prompted us to remember words, match symbols and colors, and a test where
we had to remember the placement of certain colored letters on a screen. The basics
of ImPACT are that before the season of a sport begins, all the athletes are
required to complete a series of assessments to test the capability of
different parts of your intact brain. Learning, memory, visual processing, and
spatial processing are all catagories of things tested during several computer
tasks. Then, during the season if you get hit and may possibly have a
concussion, you return to this test and retake it. Your scores from your first
test are saved into a database with your name and, when you have a suspected
concussion, your results from your second test post-injury is compared with the
original. If you have lower results than when you had no head injury at all,
you cannot return to the game.
The ImPACT system and computer tests in general
benefit all types of players.
Since the
ImPACT test is conducted online, it is on an individual basis. The reason these
tests were conducted is mainly because professional players, specifically NFL,
would be tested in person after being taken off the field and would knowingly
make it seem like they had suffered no injury. The pressure on football players
to avoid concussions is immense because if they are taken out, they are
replaced and often are replaced permanently. The online testing makes it easier
to accumulate honest and unbiased results, making it easier to diagnose and
treat concussions. The main reason these tests are being created is to reduce
the number of concussions that go untreated and another concussion occurs right
after. Otherwise known as second impact syndrome, the brain can swell and this
is when severe consequences can occur. Different parts of your brain can be
easily affected and, with the new neurocognitive testing, players’ concussions
are diagnosed to ensure they do not suffer another.
Gerstenblith says that multiple concussions can have long term impacts on the brain and brain function. It can also lead to mental disorders, having a devastating impact on a player's life.
Similar tests to ImPACT are making a debut on
professional sidelines.
Even
professional sports like the NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA are utilizing these types
of computerized concussion testing. Specifically in the NFL, they will now be “expand[ing]concussion efforts during games”. Originally, the way the NFL determined if
a player had a concussion after wobbling off the field after a hard hit would
be to ask them a series of questions. “Where are we? Who did we play in the
last game? What is the date” are all questions that are usually part of the
NFL’s protocol. But since the NFL’s lack of force on the concussion issue has
been so series and has been taken to court, they are using methods exactly like
ImPACT that will be available on the sidelines. On iPads, they will now be
forced to take a 6-8 minute test that features similar tests such as
concentration, balance, and asks them to rate how them are feeling. They are
also taken into the locker room and asked to say the months of the year in
reverse or spit back a series of numbers.
Overall, online methods are becoming handier to
diagnose concussions.
The
concussion issue is very serious, and it is very important that the whole world
of sports takes it seriously. The new technologically progressive concussion
testing is to the health benefit of our athletes that we love to watch each
season. In years to come, the technologically will only advance further and
ensure that no athlete suffers disabilities from head trauma or concussion
related injuries.
On another note, the NFL is even revamping their rules to protect their players from concussions. They have changed rules so that the hits to the head are illegal, and results in a red flag. Players cannot hit someone in the head and it must be leading with their shoulder away from the helmet. These new rules came after lawsuits against the NFL claim they are negligent and should be taking concussions more seriously. (Audioboo form previous topic)
