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THE AFTERMATH OF CONCUSSIONS IN ATHLETES

Abstract

Michele Snow and Hope Pennington

Ouachita Baptist University, Arkadelphia, AR

The possibility of having effects after being diagnosed with a concussion and cleared is not talked about enough. With higher amounts of concussions being diagnosed these days, research should be focusing on the mental and physical effects that come from head injuries as well as alternative methods of testing for concussions. PURPOSE: To show that there are limited studies over Post-Concussion Syndrome and concussions in general that find an alternative method in regards to being asked about symptoms. It is hard to fully trust the athlete’s answers they might th, and that makes it impossible for Post-Concussion Syndrome to be missed. This leads to symptoms being present later in life and affecting the athletes’ mental and brain health after sports. METHODS: A questionnaire was sent out to male and female collegiate athletes that are participants of both soccer and football (N=19). The participants aged 19-24, and each one answered 13 open-ended questions about their experience at the time of diagnosis, and their experience now. The average number of concussions that each participant had was calculated and put into a graph. Current symptoms expressed by the participants were put into percentages on 4 different pie charts. RESULTS: Research showed that 10 out of 18 athletes still experience symptoms after being diagnosed. Headaches were the most common symptoms with a calculated percentage that ranged from 18%-38%. All 18 athletes were cleared by professionals before returning to play, but 55.56% of the athletes had still been symptomatic. CONCLUSION: Data showed concerning results on the study. It was concluded that the more concussions an athlete has had, resulted in the athlete showing more symptoms they had after being cleared. The majority of athletes are not giving themselves proper rest time, and could be a major factor in the brain not healing properly. The participants still being symptomatic while returning to play could be harming athletes’ health long-term, and increasing the risk of Post-Concussion Syndrome. are not giving themselves proper rest time, and could be a major factor in the brain not healing properly. The participants are still symptomatic after returning to play, which could be harmful to the athletes’ health long-term, and increasing the risk of Post-Concussion Syndrome

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