Est. 1879
Protection for athletes' brains
When a concussion occurs, the brain is shoved against the skull, causing a bruise on the area of impact. When the head ricochets off whatever it has made impact with, the brain flies to the opposite side of the head, colliding with the other side of the skull, forming another Graphic By Jacob Mason bruise.
New form seeks to protect students from concussions' long-term, damaging effects By Mallory Thompson Junior Katelyn Hogsett suffered a blow to the back of the head from a basketball last April while at church. Initially, “it didn’t even hurt,” Hogsett said. But within the cavities of her skull, two damaging bruises began to form on her brain -- one where she was hit and one on the opposite side. The next day, these contusions started causing dizziness and nausea.
“I had short-term memory loss,” Hogsett said. “The next day I couldn’t remember what I did the day before.” Because of the severity of her concussion, Hogsett was pulled from school and activities for two weeks, missing the rest of her softball season. Now, more student athletes could be required to stay out of competition longer as schools adopt a new concussion form. The form, included as part of the routine papers for sports physicals, requires anyone suffering head trauma to immediately be pulled from activities. The athlete must be cleared by a physician before returning to sports. The form is part of a new state law. Some students said they understand the need
Lawrence High School, 1901 Louisiana St. Lawrence, KS 66046
for the new requirements. Junior Kylie Seamen has had four concussions. With one of those concussions, Seamen felt she returned to sports too soon. “When I would play, I wouldn’t have that bad of a headache, but I felt dizzy, I felt off,” Seamen said. “I wasn’t playing right.” Had this new form been in place when Seamen suffered from her concussion, she would not have been able to return to her activity without being cleared by a doctor. When asked about the dangers of playing with a concussion, both LHS athletic trainer, Jeremy Goates and KU director of athletic training, David Carr answered with the same word:
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“Death.” “You can die,” Goates said. “Your concussion can become more severe or you can get secondary concussions.” Secondary concussions refers to Second Impact Syndrome, or SIS. SIS occurs when someone with a concussion returns to play before their symptoms have subsided and suffers another blow to the head. This can cause severe swelling of the brain, which leads to decreased blood flow to the brain, which then leads to death. Goates sees most concussion cases from football, followed by soccer, then baseball and softball. Continued on page three. Vol. 122, Issue 2, Oct. 5, 2011