A rise in lawsuits by former National Football League players against the league on how it handled concussions continues to gain momentum as more and more players join the litigation which has reached numbers into the thousands.
As the sizzling topic continues to grow nationally, it is luring local interest, too.
Wyatt LaVigne, physical therapist at Rainy Lake Medical Center, said he knows first-hand the International Falls community needs to be better informed when it comes to concussion awareness.
“When I was a young athlete, I saw several players who suffered concussion-like symptoms after a blow to the head,” the 2004 Falls High School graduate said. “It was very common for that athlete to be told to shake it off and get back out there. Although we didn’t know it at the time, that athlete was displaying signs of a mild traumatic brain injury. We now know those players are at great risk for long-term ramifications and need to assure that players who have a concussion are managed appropriately to limit these negative and potentially devastating effects.”
To make the community more cognizant of the potential dangers caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head, LaVigne. Sue Palm, a nurse at Independent School District No. 361, and Jeri Vergeldt, a doctor at RLMC, will explain the signs, symptoms and proper treatments for concussions during a seminar open to the public Monday. The event is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. in the Falls High choir room.
“Although concussions are common in athletics, they can also occur in other realms, such as on the playground or at work,” LaVigne said. “That’s why we are opening this seminar to the community as a whole.”
What is a concussion?
Experts define a concussion as a a mild traumatic brain injury that may occur when a person’s head hits an object or a moving object strikes the head. It can cause a multitude of symptoms, such as headache, dizziness, memory loss and sensitivity to light and sound. Studies show that it also can cause lifelong symptoms such as permanent memory loss and depression.
LaVigne said about half of concussions go undiagnosed.
“One problem I have run into in my career is when a parent or coach tries to determine if an athlete has had a concussion,” he said. “Often times, the athlete is told he or she can return to the game, when he or she shouldn’t. It is important to leave diagnosing a concussion to health care professionals. The motto I tell parents and coaches is ‘When in doubt, sit them out and get them checked out.’”
LaVigne’s theory follows growing evidence of the damage caused by repeated blows to the head and some high-profile suicides by former players.
The topic gained plenty of attention during last weekend’s Super Bowl and player health and improved safety dominated NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s annual Super Bowl news conference Feb.1.
“I’ll stand up. I’ll be accountable. It’s part of my responsibility. I’ll do everything,” Goodell said during the conference about player safety. “But the players have to do it. The coaches have to do it. Our officials have to do it. Our medical professionals have to do it.”
Taking action
The NFL, the American College of Sports Medicine and a long list of other groups are teaming up to support state laws designed to protect the brains of young athletes.
The groups say they’re concerned because each year more than 60,000 high school athletes sustain a concussion.
Jay Boyle, FHS football coach, said two players received blows to their heads resulting in concussions just this past football season.
“During a game, if an athlete experiences any symptoms that resemble those of a concussion or gives or takes a blow that looks like it could have caused a concussion, he is checked by a trainer or other medical professional that is working the game,” the 2001 graduate and former Bronco football player said. “(An injured player) is not allowed to return to the game until approved to do so by that medical professional.”
Boyle said pressures to ignore symptoms in order to return to play are there, but “with all of the attention and focus right now being put on concussions and the lasting effects they can have, we are seeing far less athletes neglect the seriousness of the injury than we use to.”
Vergeldt warns that the longer symptoms of a concussion are ignored, the more dangerous the situation can become.
“If a patient is honest about their symptoms, it is usually pretty easy to diagnose a concussion,” she said. “The diagnosis may be more difficult if the symptoms are delayed, occurring the next day rather than immediately after the incident. If a patient denies the symptoms of a concussion, it is virtually impossible to diagnose it.”
And, the long-term effects that linger with an untreated concussion are serious, Vergeldt added. She explained the main concern is patients developing a post-concussive syndrome, which is when the symptoms persist for an extended period of time.
“We want to raise everyone’s awareness so the athletes will admit to the symptoms of a concussion rather than denying them so they can continue to play,” she said. “We only get one brain for our whole life, and we want to keep it as healthy as possible.”
Boyle said prevention of concussions comes from talking about them and teaching proper technique.
“The first thing that we do as a football program after fitting and adjusting helmets is watch videos about proper blocking and tackling techniques,” Boyle said. “We take pride in keeping our high school athletes in some of the best and safest equipment that can be provided to them.”
One could mean more
Once a patient receives one concussion, the danger of it happening again are much greater.
“Recent research has shown that multiple concussions can cause harmful long-term ramifications that we previously were unaware of,” LaVigne said. “For example, athletes who suffer three or more concussions are five times more likely to develop neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
“Also, recent research has shown that several professional athletes who suffered repeated concussions during their careers have gone on to suffer a disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which cause symptoms similar to dementia.”
LaVigne said data is still new to the medical community and stressed the importance for people to educate themselves in order to make necessary decisions about their future should they suffer a concussion.
“Appropriate concussion management is very important to limit potential long-term ramifications,” he said. “Take care of your brain, as it is going to take care of you for the rest of your life.”
