Concussions Case

A current hot topic in the medical and sports worlds today is concussion. Concussions can be defined in many different ways. According to the source, Any Given Monday, by Dr. James Andrews, a concussion is referred to as a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). Another definition is, "a mild brain injury that briefly impairs neurological functions."(Izenburg) When the head is hit, they often compare the brain to jello inside a container.

Over the last eleven years, concussion rates have increased by 15.5% per year according to The MedStar Research Institute in Baltimore. Only 41% of schools have a certified trainer that knows how to deal with concussions. (Gregory) The top concussion related sports for boys were football, which accounted for half the injuries, and lacrosse. The most common sports for girl's concussions were soccer followed by lacrosse. In sports such as basketball and soccer, girls had twice the concussion risk as boys. (Bernstein) The average number of sports related concussions yearly in the United States is 3.8 million. (Lando). Studies have shown that 41% of concussed athletes return to sports too soon. (Gregory).

The brain has many different functions and is a very complex organ. Understanding the brain helps to understand concussions. The brain weighs approximately three pounds and is made of four major parts. The cerebrum makes up 7/8th of the brain and is the main site of consciousness, feelings, ideas and memories. The cerebellum's task is to deal with nerve signals between brain and muscle. It controls body posture and balance and allows for smooth coordinated movements. The diencephalon controls level of consciousness, whether fully alert, drowsy, day dreaming, or asleep. It also checks information coming from other sense organs such as the eyes. It controls mood, emotions and basic feelings. The brain stem is the lowest part of the brain and merges with the spinal cord. The brain stem controls breathing, heart beat and digestion. The brain is often described by areas called lobes. The largest lobe is called the frontal lobe. It is divided into four different areas. The first is the Primary Motor Cortex. This controls bodily movements. The next area is the Broca's Area, this is in control of facial neurons, speech and language comprehension. The third area is the Orbitalfrontal Cortex and the fourth is the Olfactory Bulb which controls smell. The second lobe is the Occipital lobe which is located in the back of the head. The Occipital lobe is broken up into two different parts; the first is the Primary Visual Cortex which is responsible for recognizing size, color, light, and motion. The second part of the lobe is Visual Association Area which interprets information from the visual cortex. Next, is the temporal lobe. It is located at the sides of the head, below the temple area. It is made up of three parts. Number one is the primary auditory cortex, which controls hearing. Number two is the primary olfactory cortex which controls interpretation of smell and number three is the Wernices area which controls language comprehension. The last lobe is the parietal lobe and is located behind the frontal lobe. This lobe controls senses and sensations, spatial awareness and perception. This is an overview of the brain. (Parker)

The areas of the brain most commonly affected by concussions or brain injury are the frontal and temporal lobes. This is because they are pushed up against the bone of the skull and when an injury occurs,