The Hidden Danger
Hematoma & Internal Brain Issues
There are injuries to the brain that may escape visual recognition, simply because an observer cannot see them. Severe blows can cause internal damage to the brain, causing a cascading internal reaction inside the brain. This could lead to a life & death situation for the individual involved. In some cases it has taken an extremely short period of time before a player became unconscious, went into a coma, and subsequently died. This developed from bleeding/pressure within the brain, that resulted from the trauma to the brain. There are a number of items that can occur, with some listed below:
- Epidural hematoma
- Subdural hematoma
- Subarachnoid bleed
- Intracerebral bleed
- Sheer injury
- Skull fracture
For full information on the above items, click here
In general, when a hit/collision occurs, people are aware of the impact type. When a hard impact occurs to a player from contact with another player, ball, ground, or goal post, a warning flag should be raised in the mind of the coach & parent.
When in doubt, sit them out, and in particular, if you have seen evidence, even remotely, of a hit/collision, which might cause an injury to the brain, have it immediately checked. Do not wait to watch the completion of the game, safety of the athlete comes first. There will always be another game, but not so if health is not protected.
There has to be as much diligence in watching for concussions in practices, as there might exist during a regular game. For groups that may have sideline personal during a game, whose job is to watch for/handle concussions, this may not exist during practices. The entire responsibility then falls to the coach. It is not uncommon for the parent to have dropped their player off for practice and then left. This leaves the coach in the position of having to attempt contacting a parent, or waiting for them to return, should a suspected concussion situation develop.
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