More research funds are going toward sports-related concussion studies and concussion risks for youth athletes. We often think about football and other contact sports when we consider traumatic brain injury (TBI) risks, yet many different sports and recreational activities can put young athletes at serious risk of sustaining a concussion.

A recent study conducted by researchers at Northwestern University found that concussions are more common than we previously thought among female soccer players. Nearly 30% of all soccer injuries are concussions. To put that number in perspective, about 24% of all football injuries are concussions. To put that another way, more girls suffer sports-related concussions playing soccer in high school than do boys who play football.

Girls Soccer Players Suffer Head Injuries More Often Than Boys Soccer Players

Male youth athletes frequently are the focus of sports-related concussion studies given that football—the contact sport with the most prominence when it comes to head injury risks—is populated largely by males. However, female athletes also are at serious risk of sports-related concussions, especially female youth soccer players. When we look at both men’s and women’s soccer, youth women’s teams “tend to have more concussions than boy,” according to the authors of the study.

Soccer is actually among the most dangerous sports for young female athletes when it comes to head injuries, according to the study. The researchers explored concussions risks and rates in numerous high school sports, including but not limited to soccer, basketball, softball, baseball, wrestling, and volleyball. In those sports, female soccer players tended to have the highest number of concussions.

Concussions are Becoming More Common in Youth Sports

One of the most worrying aspects of the study is that the researchers concluded concussion rates are rising in youth sports generally, despite the attention coaches and schools are paying to concussion and TBI protocols. Why are more girls who play soccer suffering concussions?

Some commentators believe there is a gender gap in athletic training. In general, youth athletes do not have as much experience as college-level or professional players. Yet sometimes parents question whether girls soccer players are receiving the same training as boys soccer players surrounding proper ways to fall on the field, as well as how to head a soccer ball. Even with the best training, however, sports-related concussions can still occur.

Schools do have concussion protocols in place, but it is always important to think about improvement — better ways to train players to avoid and to deal with injury, and better ways of emphasizing the importance of self-reporting symptoms of a concussion. Many youth athletes do not tell coaches or parents when they have signs of a concussion, which can make recovery much more difficult.

Seek Advice from a Poway Brain Injury Lawyer

Youth concussions often occur because of another party’s negligence. If your child suffered a TBI while playing high school sports, you should learn more about your legal options. An experienced Poway brain injury attorney can speak with you today. Contact the Walton Law Firm to learn more about how we assist injury victims throughout San Diego County.

See Related Blog Posts: More Than Concussions Cause CTE, New Study Says FDA Approves New Blood Test to Detect Concussions

(image courtesy of Jeffrey F Lin)

Serious accidents and injuries can take place anywhere, and they often happen when we’re least expecting them. Depending on the type and severity of an injury, the consequences can be life-long. According to a recent article in U-T San Diego, a young Carlsbad man recently suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) while playing in a recreational softball league. While he’s currently in stable condition, doctors worry that he may not be able to fully recover.

A “Freak Accident” on the Softball Field

Less than a week ago, 28-year-old Mike Petracca had been in Las Vegas for a softball tournament. However, while he was walking across the softball fields, he sustained a TBI in what his coach referred to as “a freak accident.” While Petracca was walking between the fields, a “softball bat slipped from a player’s hands, flew like a rocket nearly 90 feet over a fence and struck Petracca in the head.”

After being struck in the head by the bat, Petracca fell and “hit his head on the asphalt.” Emergency medical responders rushed him to a nearby hospital, where doctors “determined he suffered a fractured skull and swelling of his brain.” As a result of the severe injury, Petracca underwent emergency surgery. However, post-surgery scans of his brain suggest that the region of his brain that controls speech (in the frontal lobe of one hemisphere of the brain, known as the Broca’s area) remains damaged. As such, Petracca has only been able to utter one full word since waking up after surgery.

Unfortunately, according to Petracca’s surgeon, the damage cannot be repaired with surgery. Instead, Petracca will need time to allow his brain to heal. However, there are no guarantees. According to the doctor, “he may regain speech in a day or two, or a year or two, or never.” In short, it’s impossible to predict the outcome of this severe head trauma.

Members of the LGBT sports community, of which Petracca is a part, have been generous in helping to fund Petracca’s recovering and in offering their support. He remains in stable condition, and doctors report that his motor skills continue to improve. Petracca’s medical team hopes that the facial paralysis he’s currently experiencing will heal with time. After he’s discharged from the hospital, he’ll continue treatment at a Southern California rehabilitation center.

Sports-Related Severe Brain Injuries

We often think about sports-related brain injuries in college or professional athletes, but they can happen to anyone. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), TBIs are contributing factors in about 30 percent of all injury-related deaths in the country.

While many sports-related TBIs are classified as concussions, or mild TBIs, these injuries can also be more severe. Two types of severe TBIs exist:

• Closed: where an injury to the brain was caused by the movement of the brain within the skull.
• Penetrating: where an injury to the brain resulted from a foreign object entering the skull.

In cases of severe head trauma, the effects can be long-term and life-altering. The CDC explains that, in the case of non-fatal severe TBIs, patients often report one of more of the following problems:

• Impaired cognitive function;
• Impaired motor function;
• Impaired sensation; and,
• Emotional changes, including depression, anxiety, and general personality shifts.

If you or a loved one has sustained a traumatic brain injury, you may be able to file a negligence claim. You should contact an experienced San Diego brain injury attorney to learn more about seeking compensation for your injuries.

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