An extensive report about sports-related concussions in young people, released last week by the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council, made recommendations that included bolstering research, collecting data, examining injury protocols and educating the public. But the report identified one particularly stubborn challenge: the “culture of resistance” among high school and college athletes, who may be inclined to shrug off the invisible injuries and return immediately to the field.
“There is still a culture among athletes,” the report said, “that resists both the self-reporting of concussions and compliance with appropriate concussion management plans.”
Dr. Frederick P. Rivara, a pediatrician at the University of Washington’s …show more content…
And 92 percent of the players knew they risked serious injury if they returned to the field too quickly after a concussion. Yet only 54 percent said they would report such symptoms to their coach, and 53 percent said that even if they had a headache from an injury, they would continue to play.
A recent study in The Journal of Pediatrics found that cheerleaders also under-reported concussion symptoms.
Awareness about the potential seriousness of concussions, particularly on developing brains, has increased markedly in the last few years. Most states have baseline legislation mandating concussion education for athletes and coaches. But at the same time, the allure of athletic success has grown among young people — not only because of the possibility of college scholarships, but because of the salaries and celebrity status conferred upon star professional athletes.
“There’s a machismo to sports, whether you’re male or female,” said Dustin J. Fink, an athletic trainer who supervises a dozen sports at Mt. Zion High School, in Illinois. “It’s most often seen in professional sports, where they are celebrated for being warriors and champions, for doing everything they can to stay on the field and …show more content…
Fink said. “They need that win, so they will try to override the athletic trainer or manipulate the athlete to get back in the game.”
He added that Mt. Zion coaches did not behave in this manner.
Mr. Fink did say he had begun to see some change in the culture in recent years. When he pulled a student from a game because of a concussion, he said, parents and other coaches used to say, “What do you know? It’s no big deal!” Now, more often, he hears, “Thank you, we’ll get it checked out.”
Mr. Coyne, whose concussions came not just from football but from hitting his head on a pole standard during a high jump and from rough-housing in the locker room, said that this, his junior year, was the first in which he felt symptom-free and did not have to rely on extensive accommodations.
He is majoring in political science and economics, and longs to return to sports. But his football days are over, and he hasn’t been medically cleared for his next choice,
“There is still a culture among athletes,” the report said, “that resists both the self-reporting of concussions and compliance with appropriate concussion management plans.”
Dr. Frederick P. Rivara, a pediatrician at the University of Washington’s …show more content…
And 92 percent of the players knew they risked serious injury if they returned to the field too quickly after a concussion. Yet only 54 percent said they would report such symptoms to their coach, and 53 percent said that even if they had a headache from an injury, they would continue to play.
A recent study in The Journal of Pediatrics found that cheerleaders also under-reported concussion symptoms.
Awareness about the potential seriousness of concussions, particularly on developing brains, has increased markedly in the last few years. Most states have baseline legislation mandating concussion education for athletes and coaches. But at the same time, the allure of athletic success has grown among young people — not only because of the possibility of college scholarships, but because of the salaries and celebrity status conferred upon star professional athletes.
“There’s a machismo to sports, whether you’re male or female,” said Dustin J. Fink, an athletic trainer who supervises a dozen sports at Mt. Zion High School, in Illinois. “It’s most often seen in professional sports, where they are celebrated for being warriors and champions, for doing everything they can to stay on the field and …show more content…
Fink said. “They need that win, so they will try to override the athletic trainer or manipulate the athlete to get back in the game.”
He added that Mt. Zion coaches did not behave in this manner.
Mr. Fink did say he had begun to see some change in the culture in recent years. When he pulled a student from a game because of a concussion, he said, parents and other coaches used to say, “What do you know? It’s no big deal!” Now, more often, he hears, “Thank you, we’ll get it checked out.”
Mr. Coyne, whose concussions came not just from football but from hitting his head on a pole standard during a high jump and from rough-housing in the locker room, said that this, his junior year, was the first in which he felt symptom-free and did not have to rely on extensive accommodations.
He is majoring in political science and economics, and longs to return to sports. But his football days are over, and he hasn’t been medically cleared for his next choice,