Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) have gained national attention in a recent controversy surrounding national, college and high school football. Football players are sustaining alarming levels of concussions, and the results can be permanent. It was recently found that a large number of football players have a brain disease known as chronic-traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which can cause problems that include depression and an increased risk of suicide.
Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, when an Ohio State football player went missing and was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound after complaining of concussions to family members, it became apparent to the nation that this is a problem that needs an immediate solution. Fortunately, there are several unique and innovative solutions in development.
What Solutions Are Being Developed?
One solution in development at the University of Colorado will use an asthma drug to curtail the initial damage to the brain after sustaining a concussion. After sustaining a concussion, there is bruising and inflammation that can cause further injury to the brain and long-term complications. Researchers with the University of Colorado hope to use the drug to reduce inflammation and potential nerve cell death.
Another high-tech gadget in development by researchers at NorthShore University will use a collar device that compresses vessels in the neck to increase blood flow to the brain. By increasing blood volume in the cranium, the “twisting and turning” of the brain during an impact can be reduced.
The most obvious way to reduce the impact and long-term health effects of concussions in football players is to inform coaches of what symptoms to look out for and to use their judgment to know when to pull a player out of the game to receive medical attention. Having a way to treat concussions that are not open to human error may prove to be more effective, but difficult to implement right away.
Metier Law Firm has decades of experience working with traumatic brain injury cases and can give you the representation you deserve. If you are looking for a personal injury lawyer, please check out our Facebook and Twitter pages.
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Did You Know? The average impact force of a tackle in football can exceed 1,600 pounds!
You can read more about treatments currently in development by reading this article at CBS Denver.