Concussion & Sports
Are you an athlete? Have you had a concussion or concussion like symptoms while playing your sport? Are you worried about getting another concussion? Read on to understand the risk of getting a concussion while playing sports and how physiotherapy can help!
Incidence of Sports Related Concussions
When people think of concussions, most people think of sports-related concussions. Concussion risk varies quite drastically between sports. In youth, the sports with the highest incidence of concussion are football, basketball, soccer, playground activities, and bicycling. In teens and adults, rugby, football, lacrosse, soccer, and hockey are linked with the highest incidence of concussion. Females specifically have a higher incidence of concussions in soccer and basketball, when compared to their male counterparts. In general, female athletes are more likely to receive a concussion during games than male athletes. There are several other risk factors within each sport that increase a player’s risk of concussion such as playing in a high contact position (think offensive lineman vs. a kicker in football), a player with a BMI greater than 27 kg/m2, and training less than 3 hours per week.
How do we prevent sport-related concussions?
There are many ways to help to prevent sport related concussions. Firstly, we can properly train athletes on hitting techniques in order to protect their head and neck during full contact sports. We can also train athletes general strength and reaction time in order to prevent injuries. Neck specific strengthening is a newer training focus that has gained interest over the last few years. It has been shown that specific neck strengthening is effective at decreasing the risk of sport related head and neck injuries, including concussions.
We can also reprogram practice training drills to reduce risk of concussions. For example, if there are several groups running a drill at one time (like a hitting drill in volleyball), it should be mandatory that all other plays are out of the way prior to the next group beginning the drill. This has been implanted at many high-level sports tournaments in an attempt to reduce concussions in practice.
What to do if a Sports-Related Concussion Occurs
If you or someone you know has sustained a hit to the head, or a hit to the body that results in a whiplash-like head movement, it is important to know the signs and symptoms of concussion. These include but are not limited to:
- Brain fog
- Dizziness
- Headache
- Nausea
- Blurred vision
- Trouble concentrating
- Confusion
- Sensitivity to light or noise
- Feeling pressure in head
- Decreased balance
If there is any possibility of a concussion, the athlete should be removed from the game. When in doubt, sit them out!! The next steps would be to get in touch with your physiotherapist to set up an appointment to assess the concussion and come up with a treatment plan to get you back to full recovery.
If you have any questions about sport-related concussions, don’t hesitate to contact one of our concussion therapists!