The Concussion Epidemic

One hit, one blow to the head is all it takes to send someone’s life in a spiraling into a free fall. Concussions in the United States have become one of the most common injuries across the entire spectrum of sports.  From famous football players to soccer players, most sports have been impacted by the concussion epidemic in some way. Yes, most players tend not to tell anyone that they have suffered a concussion. It’s not in their “nature”. The famous NFL running back Eric Dickerson once said “You are supposed to be tough. You are supposed to play through pain. You are not supposed to cry. We are taught that early on in the game as kids. Tough sport. Brutal sport. It’s like the gladiator. People want to see the big hits. They wind up on Sports Center. And as a player, you don’t want to admit you are injured.”1 So is there a problem with players not reporting concussions? Is there anyway to stop the growing epidemic of concussions that have caused so much pain and suffering? Does the National Football League (NFL) or the Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL) do enough to protect its players from concussions and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)?

Dave Duerson

A  recent study of the NFL found that 87 out of 91 former players have been diagnosed with CTE.2 Yet, even though  over 5,000 NFL players have sued the NFL over the hidden dangers of concussions, the league still denies any wrongdoing. Yes, CTE has been around since the 20’s, but our scientific knowledge is still not advanced enough to dampen the trending numbers of players being diagnosed with this horrible condition. Some of the most noteworthy stars to have been affected by CTE are; Tyler Sash (overdose on painkillers), Mike Webster (Heart Attack), Earl Morrall (Parkinson's Disease), and Dave Duerson (Suicide from CTE complications). All of these stars suffered from traumatic brain injuries that went unseen for years.

Mike Webster 

In Mike Webster’s 2002 autopsy, neuropathologist Bennet Omalu found  that playing football was/is linked to CTE and quickly became the focus of a Frontline investigation.3 Soon after the investigation, Omalu’s findings were featured in the film “Concussion”. Obviously, CTE is happening on the professional level, but the scary fact is that it is also happening on the local level with youth sports.  In Texas, the UIL has established a governing body that oversees the state's student-athletes and establishes regulations to prevent the possibility of concussions/CTE.

In just the past year, the UIL has created a partnership between ConTex and the O’Donnell Brain Institute at UT Southwestern Medical Center in order to gather data on concussions that could lead to changes in rules and player equipment.3 This is the largest statewide effort to track concussions among high school student-athletes. The UIL has more than 1,400 member schools and 800,000 student-athletes. It  is the first association of its kind to launch a registry of this magnitude.4 The program aims at creating data that can help change how football is played and can improve the safety of its student-athletes. In early March 2017, the UIL alongside the National Federation of State High School Association announced that there will be rules changes in the upcoming football season which includes stricter penalties for blind side blocks and no pop-up onside kicks.5

That one hit, one fall, could very well end a life today. CTE is a growing problem that has taken countless lives and has ripped apart families. It’s real and shouldn’t be ignored. Ask yourself if that were to be your child, would you want the problem recognized? It’s a hidden danger waiting to explode.

1Phillips, S. (n.d.). Quotes from players and experts. Retrieved from  

http://www.stonephillipsreports.com/2012/01/quotes-from-players-and-experts/

2Bellware, K. (2016). NFL Insists Football Is Safe Even As List Of Players With CTE Grows. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/super-bowl-nfl-cte_us_56b4cde9e4b04f9b57d94fa2

3Breslow, J. M. (2013). The autopsy that changed football. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/the-autopsy-that-changed-football/

4Kubena, B. (2016). UIL Concussion Study Could Lead to Changes in Rules, Equipment Retrieved from https://www.apnews.com/023c80b0d8d24d3883f7a0e359cc26da

5NFHS. (2017). New Blocking, Kicking Rules Address Risk Minimization in High School Football Retrieved from https://www.nfhs.org/articles/new-blocking-kicking-rules-address-risk-minimization-in-high-school-football/