Concussions and
Headgear
Tyler Kohmetscher
S
Definition
S A concussion is a type of
traumatic brain injury that
is caused by a blow to the
head or body, a fall, or
another injury that jars or
shakes the brain inside the skull
Signs and Symptoms
S Thinking and remembering
S Feeling slowed down
S Not thinking clearly
S Not being able to remember new information
S Not being able to concentrate
S Physical
S Fuzzy or blurry vision
S Headache
S Sensitivity to light or noise
S Feeling tired or having no energy
S Dizziness
S Balance problems
S Nausea and vomiting
Signs and Symptoms (cont)
S Emotional and mood
S Sad
S Easily upset or angered
S More emotional
S Nervous or anxious
S Sleep
S Sleeping less than usual
S Sleeping more than usual
S Having a hard time falling asleep
Factors affecting Concussions
BPS Model
S Biological
S Female
S Child
S Psychological
S Having to “suck it up” for parents, coaches
S Pressure to perform
S Social
S Relationships with parents or coaches
S Live up to social gender roles
S
Males show no signs of weakness
Diagnosis
S ImPACT Test
S Taken at beginning of year before beginning athletics
S Baseline to test if you experienced
concussion later
S Memory, attention span, and
reaction time
S Physician
S Check for attention span, memory
and reaction time
Headgear
S Became popular in the 2003 Women’s World Cup
S Resembles an enlarged headband
S Weighs less then 2 ounces
S Covers forehead, temple,
and occipital bone in the
back of the head
Stats for Headgear
S In a population studied,
S 47.8% had experienced symptoms of a concussion during the
S
S
S
S
current soccer year.
26.9% of athletes who wore headgear had concussions
52.8% of those who did not wear headgear had concussions
More than one concussion was experienced by 50.0% of the
concussed headgear athletes
69.3% of the concussed No-head gear group had experience
more than one concussion
Pros and Cons
S Pros
S Prevents concussions
S Makes you more confident in playing harder
S Not scare
S Cons
S Not comfortable
S Makes you look not very “cool”
S Can still suffer concussion whether wearing it or not
References
S Concussion - WebMD: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis,
Treatment, and Prevention. (n.d.). WebMD - Better
information. Better health. Retrieved November 7, 2012, from
http://www.webmd.com/brain/tc/traumatic-brain-injuryconcussion-overview
S
Broglio, S., Yu, Y., Broglio, M., & Sell, T. (n.d.). The
Efficacy of Soccer Headgear. National Center for Biotechnology
Information. Retrieved November 7, 2012, from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P
References
S LONGMAN, J. (n.d.). The New York Times > Sports >
Soccer > Soccer Headgear: Does It Do Any Good? The New
York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia.
Retrieved November 7, 2012, from
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/27/sports/soccer/27so
ccer.html?_r=2&
S Sarafino, E. P., & Smith, T. W. (2012). Health psychology:
biopsychosocial interactions (7th ed.). Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
References
S Concussion. (n.d.). MedicineNet. Retrieved December 12,
2013, from
http://www.medicinenet.com/brain_concussion/page4.ht
m
S Delaney, S., & Drummond, R. (2008). The effect of
protective headgear on head injuries and concussions in
adolescent football (soccer) players. British Journal of Sports
Medicine, 42(2), 110-115. Retrieved December 13, 2012,
from the Academic Search Premier database.