Concussions have been so roundly ignored on the football field that a law is now in effect to force their treatment. Joshua Rotenberg M.D. of Texas Medical and Sleep Specialists says there are nearly four million concussions a year in the country. He says so often concussions are overlooked, that there needed to be a law.
"Every school district that has interscholastic sports, they have to remove a child from play, or practice, if they suspect that they have had a concussion."
He says the demands of football practice and the priority that Texas places on sports often supercedes treatment on the field.
"People are so motivated to play the game, that not even an alteration in their brain function will stop them."
Rotenberg says a concussion can remain symptomless ... hours after the injury. Symptoms include headache, nausea and being forgetful. This means kids will continue to play, making things worse.
"It gets worse with exercise so after sitting on the sidelines for a few minutes, you might feel fine but then a kid gets back in the game and they end up messing up a play that they normally would have done just fine."
He says such an injury, left untreated, can lead to permanent brain damage.
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