DAPHNE, Ala. — Football players collide with one another hundreds of times a day on the field, and in the National Football League the speed of players has increased — as has the impact of hits — throughout the decades.

With this comes greater risk of a concussion occurring from a hit to the head.

Much fuss has been made in the NFL about the danger of concussions, and the league has hiked fines for helmet-to-helmet hits and taken greater precautions when players receive concussions.

However, this danger does not apply solely to professional sports.

Even in high school, coaches, doctors and staff recognize the long-term effects a concussion could have on a player and the danger it presents.

According to Greg Tyler, director of the United States Sports Academy’s library, and his post in the United States Sports Academy’s “The Sport Digest” blog, “The NFL is helping craft legislation in states around the country that would protect young athletes from the devastating long-term effects of concussions.”

Eight high-school athletic programs in Baldwin County face dangers associated with concussions.

What is a concussion?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a concussion is a brain injury — caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head — that can alter brain functioning. Most concussions occur without loss of consciousness, which makes it hard to detect without knowing other symptoms. Results of the injury often include confusion, damaged vision, memory loss and nausea, but sometimes an individual could lose consciousness.

“It’s a change of direction of the brain in the skull,” Ric Esposito, the academy’s chair of sport medicine, said. “That’s what gives the irritation and bruising. It’s not only the specific blow to one side of the skull, but it’s a dissipation of energy.

“It’s almost like a recoil problem.”

Esposito said annually there are approximately 300,000 reported sports-related concussions by loss of consciousness, but one out of 10 concussions result in loss of consciousness, making the real figure around 3 million.

Dangers

Concussions can be unavoidable when playing contact sports, especially in football where players often lead with the head or helmet in a tackle.

“In football, you get hit every play,” Daphne High School Athletic Director and football head Coach Glenn Vickery said.

Long-term danger in receiving a concussion does not come the first time a player receives the injury, but the next time if the injury did not receive enough time to heal.

“Multiple concussions link to lasting symptoms,” he said. “The more concussions somebody has the more injury it is to the brain. They will have more residual problems. We need to caution parents, coaches and medical personnel on the player’s history of concussions.” (vic)

Esposito said if a player does not give the injury enough time to heal, it’s likely he will receive additional concussions.

See the full story  on Page 1A in the Feb. 4 edition of The Bulletin.