Sports Injuries - Concussions

What is a Concussion?

The Latin word concutere -- the source for the English word concussion -- means, literally, "to shake violently," according to Dr. Robert Cantu, Chief Clinical Professor of Neurosurgery and co-director of Boston University's Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy. In his book, Concussions and Our Kids: America's Leading Expert on How to Protect Young Athletes and Keep Sports Safe, Cantu reports that nearly four million sports and recreation-related concussions are sustained each year, and "…many times that number" go unrecognized (Cantu, 2012, p. 2).

Concussions in sports happen when an athlete is "…slammed and makes sudden and forceful contact" with the ground, a court, a pool deck, a batted or thrown ball, a kicked ball, and "…of course with another player," Cantu explains (p. 3). A concussion can occur without any contact with the head, Cantu asserts. The "whiplash effect" is...
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