November 18, 2009

Concussion: Not Just a Minor Injury

By Kelley Luckstein

In 2008, Dougherty was a 17-year-old junior linebacker for his high school football team in Montclair, N.J. In September of that year, Dougherty suffered two concussions in two weeks, according to a lawsuit filed by his family. A month later, while playing for his school team, Dougherty suffered a third concussion. Two days later, he died…

 

Some injuries -- including concussions -- are unavoidable, even for young athletes, say sports medicine experts. Michael Stuart, an orthopedic surgeon and co-director of the Sports Medicine Center at the Mayo Clinic, tells ParentDish that the key for parents and youth coaches is "to understand what a concussion is and what the symptoms are."

 

Also important, Stuart says, is for adults to be cautious about allowing children who have suffered head trauma to return to their sport.

 

ParentDish by Mark Hyman, 11/17/09

Tags: concussion, head trauma, Neurology, Sports Medicine

Please sign in or register to post a reply.
Contact Us · Privacy Policy