ABC6: Concussions

We are well into the football season - in the NFL, college, and high school levels. And much of the talk heading into the seasons focused on head injuries. Football is certainly not the only sport where concussions come into play, but it certainly has had the bulk of the attention nationally.

With that in mind, it certainly is on the mind of neurologists as well.

"At the microscopic level, every time that brain is jostled, some of those nerve cells get twisted and they form proteins that exist within the cell that probably end up being toxic to that cell,” said Dr. Geoff Eubank to ABC6.

There have been some advancements over the years when it comes to technology, and at the same time, much more talk at the younger levels about tackling safety, and recovery.

"The old days it was kinda like shake it off, your bell's rung, get back in there. Now the players get educated, the coaches get educated, trainers, even the referees, so that if somebody is in field play and it appears they have suffered a concussion they are taken out immediately and they don't return to play," said Eubank to ABC6.

Eubank told ABC6 reporter Lu Ann Stoia athletes should try and take a few days to a week off for a first concussion. "You need people to do normal non-exertion activities, lay low, don't have a lot of stimuli but after a couple, two to three days especially if symptoms subside, you need to kinda like get back to some normal but not aggressive activities," he said.

If you would like to see the stories from ABC6 on concussions click here, or here.
 

For more on concussions from the CDC, click here.