• Sports Medicine +
  • Arthroscopic Surgery
  • Common Sports Injuries +
    • Knee Injuries
    • Shoulder Injuries
    • Head Injuries
    • Heat Injuries
  • Returning to Court Sports
  • Returning to Running
• Adult Reconstruction +
  • Osteoarthritis
  • Joint Replacement
  • Computer Aided Surgery
• Common Hand Problems
• Special Athletic Groups +
  • Children and sports
  • Female Athletes

COMMON SPORTS INJURIES

Head Injuries

Concussions
A concussion occurs when the brain is shaken or traumatized. An injury to the brain can occur at the point of impact or on the opposite side. It is possible for an athlete to appear completely normal and then become unconscious. Therefore, a thorough evaluation should be done on all athletes with head injuries and their condition should be closely monitored.

Any athlete who loses consciousness for any period of time or who suffers from amnesia following the injury must be referred to a physician and be cleared by the physician before returning to play.

Following a head injury, an athlete may experience a variety of symptoms including severe headache, dizziness, mental confusion or memory loss, ringing in the ears, blurred vision, unequal pupil size, nausea and/or vomiting, slurred speech, seizures, unusual sleepiness, clear fluid from the nose/ears, numbness and difficulty breathing.

If the athlete's condition does not progressively improve by the end of a practice of game, the following instructions should be given:
1. Check symptoms frequently
2. Do not allow the athlete to take any medication, as these may mask the symptoms.
3. Awaken the athlete every hour.
4. Monitor respiration adn heart rate.

The athlete shoulder see a doctor immediately if symptoms worsen