Concussions and the Return-to-Play Roadmap

Concussions are rampant in youth sports today, and appropriate treatment often goes by the wayside. Why? Kids want to stay in the game and often neglect to mention or downplay symptoms.

Disclaimer:  I'm not a medical expert in this area, so please seek professional medical attention if you suspect your child has a concussion.

Our son Cameron suffered a concussion during a hockey game a few months ago. Yes, he took a direct hit to the head. But his symptoms were minor and he stayed in the game. The coach noticed he was mentally responding a tad slower than usual so he limited his playing time.

After removing his helmet at the end of the game, Cameron said that he immediately had a headache and was nauseous.

Later in the evening, Cameron's headache symptoms progressed by the hour. In the morning, the headache persisted and he mentioned that he couldn't concentrate. Ed and I both noticed his focus seemed off.

Mistake #1:  We assumed he was getting a virus and was trying to get out of going to school. Wrong. He was really in true pain with a pounding headache. At a doctor visit later in the day, the doc verified that Cameron had a concussion.

The doctor analyzed the symptoms and administered an Impact test (cognitive baseline test), comparing the results to the test Cameron had taken before the season began.

We (Ed and I) quickly learned that sending Cameron to school was a big no-no. To heal the brain, it is best to rest. That means flat out no concentrating, no focusing, no watching TV and no playing video games.

What the heck? In my day, if your head hurt, you sucked it up. Ed likely had numerous concussions (what hockey player hasn't taken a hit to the head?), yet he never took a day off. Staying out of the game and out of school seemed insane to us.

Times have changed. I can understand why. Cameron was unable to focus. I noticed this immediately upon seeing his schoolwork scores drop in one day. He couldn't answer simple questions with a normal response.

Mistake #2:  We ignored minor symptoms which appeared after Cameron had been cleared by the doctor and returned to practice. Although he had minor headache after returning to physical activities, we allowed Cameron to play in a game (without a re-check by the doctor). The result was a second concussion approximately three weeks after the first.

He barely got hit in the head, yet full-blown concussion symptoms returned later that evening following the game. This time he even appeared much worse as I could see the pain in face. His eyes were half open and his face was definitely flush. He went to watch another hockey game that even and several people noticed that he didn't look well.

So I now emphasis to all parents (and to myself) follow the appropriate return-to-play guidelines. If your child returns too soon after a concussion, there is a higher risk of a second concussion. To see recommended return-to-play guidelines, go to this link.

The most important (and probably the most neglected) guideline is to return to the previous step if any concussion symptoms occur. I beg you to pay attention to this advice.

With a second concussion, Cameron remained out of physical activity for nearly a month. He still has not returned to competitive play two months later. I plan on holding him out as long as possible since the hockey season is now over.

Fortunately his symptoms have not returned. Fingers crossed that his brain heals well enough (and is strong enough) to safely return to the game in time for next season's tryouts (in late May). We will definitely have the doctor preform a re-check shortly before he returns to game play. I pray that we avoid mistake #3.

Kids and Knee Injuries

If you're not aware already...the number of knee injuries is on the increase for young athletes.

The Today Show had a segment on this topic yesterday, Feb. 28. In the first part of the story, you will hear from Dr. Theodore Ganley, director of sports medicine at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. I'm biased because I've worked directly with Dr. Ganley in the past. His insight and research are amazing.

You can view the video here: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/#46554979

I have to admit that I hear of knee injury after knee injury from coaches whom I've interviewed in the past. Tearing an ACL is almost commonplace these days.

Injury prevention is key, so please, do what you can to keep your child injury-free...

More Abuse...

After I blogged last month on child abuse, there have been several high-profile abuse allegations. Both Syracuse basketball coach Bernie Fine and former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky were accused of multiple counts of sex abuse. Disgusting.

How does this happen? Honestly, I'm not certain. But one thing I am certain of is that I want to protect my children.

I have personally met sexual abusers and suspected sexual abusers. My fifth grade math teacher went to jail for molesting students during class. I also know a coach who was repeatedly accused of sexual abuse, but no charges were ever filed. Based on a few personal observations, here are several signs of potential abuse:

• Coaches lingering around showers.
• Kids sitting on coaches laps.
• Coaches being overly friendly (or too touchy...).
  
• Coaches selectively giving lavish or excessive gifts.
  

More signs to watch for are noted on ProtectKids.com and at USAToday.com. Of course, you need to use basic common sense to determine if a coach or another adult is crossing the line. My best advice is when in doubt, keep your child away from a potential abuser. Go with your gut.

Please, keep your children safe. Just my two cents...

Kim

Child Abuse--Protect Your Child...

I'm thoroughly disgusted by the the video released today (for which I will not post a link) of a Texas judge whipping his 16-year-old daughter with a belt. First, I'm going to scream at all of you--protect your children!

In school, church, athletic, and other programs, there are abusers and child molesters out there. And, of course, there are abusers within homes by caregivers, parents, friends, and relatives. This is horrendous. I truly want to vomit as I write this. Children are often innocent and helpless. We need to keep our eyes open and attempt to keep our children safe and unharmed.

As parents, we need to teach our children right from wrong. The child in the video which I mentioned above, was being punished for illegally downloading from internet. Sure, that is wrong. However, if the child's father had parked illegally and received a parking ticket, would the child have had the right to beat the father with a belt? No way. I know many of you might disagree, but I believe if it is not appropriate for adults to hit other adults, then it is not appropriate for adults to hit children. You can argue with me, but that is my stance.

Please, in the best interest of your child's mental and physical health, do not abuse your children. Also, report any abuse that you might suspect or oversee. I beg you...

The Responsible Athlete...

From forgetting (or neglecting) to put dishes in the dishwasher to attending practice without a water bottle, kids are irresponsible. We all know this is the case.

Is self-responsibility important? Absolutely. Many (but not all) of us tend to baby our athletes. You know what I mean--allowing her to head to school late after a long weekend of travel, buying a water bottle or Gatorade for the vending machine after she forgot to bring one from home, or purchasing a mouthguard from the soccer pro shop because she "lost" hers and didn't place the spare in her bag.

I admit it--I'm guilty of enabling my kids. I don't want to see my children miserable and forced to miss a game or practice when I can fix their mistakes. For the most part, this is human nature.

That said, I beg you to allow your children to make their own mistakes and pay the consequences. He or she will without a doubt become more responsible and remember to perform key tasks. For example, if he misses a game because he doesn't have a mouthguard, he'll surely remember to have it with him at the next game, or if he attends enough practices without water or gatorade, eventually he'll become thirsty enough and remember to pack a drink.

Now, please remind me to practice what I preach...

Kim