Rethinking Concussion Care
According to some leading doctors in the fields of sports medicine, tens of thousands of concussions may be misdiagnosed or not treated properly every year. The Medical College of Wisconsin estimates that there are 40,000 concussions that happen in high school sports every year. A huge conference in Pittsburgh, PA was held at the end of July entitled “New Developments in Sports-Related Concussion”. It was hosted by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). Pittsburgh, home to the head-clanking Steelers and bone-slamming Penguins, knows quite a lot about sports-related concussions.
Apprently, there is a lot of arguments in the sports medicine arena as to how best to treat a concussion or suspected concussion. How soon should treatment start? Do they really need all of those tests? Should you let them sleep? Just what kind of long-term damage can concussions do?
Why Is This News Here?
But, you don’t have to play sports in order to get a concussion. I got one working at Macy’s, for example. I remember for a couple of hours after the blow that I thought I was fine, and suddenly I couldn’t figure out how to stand up by myself. I couldn’t stand up by myself for nearly a week. Thankfully, I let myself be talked into going into an ambulance so I could be properly diagnosed, stuck in scary, noisy machines that kind of look like they were straight out of Doctor Who and then tucked into bed for a few days.
Old injuries like concussions can often lead to really nasty headaches. And concussions, if not treated, can certainly lead to chronic problems with your head. The movers and shakers in the field of concussion treatment tend to be the sports medicine physicians, becuase they are often well-funded. What they discover about sports-related concussions can often translate to everyday folks getting everyday concussions — like idiot me walking right into a t-shirt display at Macy’s.
Do People With Concussions Ever Wake Up?
In case you are wondering, let someone with a concussion sleep. It’s the best thing for them and they will wake up again. Here’s my previous post on concussion first aid if you want to know the gory details.
August 15th, 2008 at 11:23 pm
One of the new innovations that was pesented at the UPMC conference was a 3D MRI poster on a jaw positioning procedure that was developed to counteract the negitive affects of the boxers “Glass Jaw”. If anyone saw the hit on Reuvel Martin of the Packers last week, it’s without question, blows to the jaw play a role in this complicated puzzle. http://www.mahercor.com has a wealth of information and articles to support this new innovation in actual on field concussion prevention.
August 16th, 2008 at 10:41 am
Wow. Thanks for the info, Steve.