Why we need to take concussion and chronic traumatic encephalopathy more seriously

Compilation in the game is in the headlines, whether it is Class workYoung men in herds Highly violent “Runit” activity Or argue about whether Australian rules should be football Remove “collision” Forever.

Bringing this weighty issue for maximum prominence is former athletes that are bravery Share their long -term health conflicts After career in sports -concerns about scientific loss, mental health issues or neurodogenative disease, especially Chronic painful encephalopathy (CTE).

As yet All progress From many sports in recent years, it seems that we still have not fully explained the understanding of CTE – or perhaps we don’t want to do it.

Remind me again, what is CTE?

CTE is a neurodogenorative brain diseaseLike dementia, motor neuron disease (MND) and Parkinson’s disease.

Experts agree on relationships between painful brain injury and rising risk Alzheimer’s disease (And other dementia), and increasing proof of links Board And Parkinson,

Those who were never traumatic brain injury Still can still suffer from these diseases. However, while CTE is Rare in general populationwith one History of the effects of repeating brain Are at greater risk.

These effects cannot be diagnosed in the form of brain injuries or convention, rather non-conceit effects (small hits that do not produce signs or symptoms) Shake,

Unlike the opinion of anecdotes, an athlete’s convention history is not a significant variable in the risk and severity of CTE.

Emerging international evidence, including my own Recently published studyCTE (and its severity) shows the risk of developing, associated with exposure: the age at which a person starts a full contact game and a sports career length.

Consuration, CTE and gray sector of mental health

Currently, CTE cannot be diagnosed in living people.

However, in understanding the progression of the disease in those who have died with CTE, families have described signs and symptoms including cognitive loss: eg::

• Parkinsonism
• Memory loss
• Trouble in planning and organizing works
• Impulsive behavior
• Anger and irritability
• emotional instability
• Misuse of substances
• Suicide thoughts/behavior.

Although these signs and symptoms can be overlap with people we combine with mental health, this does not mean that the affected person had “mental health concerns”.

Constant awareness about the mental health of men is widely a good thing, but sometimes it misunderstood CTE as a mental health issue. For example, some money raising games are being channels in the names of athletes who die with CTE. Mental Health Donation and InstituteTo confuse the broad community.

As a result, two recent tragic stories, from the family of a former AFL player Shane tuck And from another Amanda GreenThere is a need to tell the widow of late NRL player and coach Paul Green.

Their stories were denied Widely organized faith in media And among the fans who were suffering from a psychiatric disease before the tuck or green tuck or green. In fact, they had CTE.

An uncomfortable conversation

So, why are we not talking more about CTE?

The answer is, unfortunately, this is an uncomfortable truth.

CTE keeping in mind Can be completely stopped If we remove the exposure risk of a repeated hit on the head, the solution is to modify many of our most popular games to make the head too rare.

This idea is opposed to opposing.

“Now is not the time to discuss such ‘political’ issues,” the response is that I usually get from academics and colleagues involved in these games, and even football-loving friends, when I try to raise awareness.

This constant hesitation only slows down the science of CTE.

If an athlete’s family has been courageous in donating his brain Australian sports brain bank And CTE has been found, the standard response of sports organizations is:

Even after Senate parliamentary check The situation is very low to change the situation.

In fact, while most sports have tried to be safe Change through rulesPragati has achieved more widely or even in recent years.

Take a recent example in NRL, when some in the rugby league community lighted many associations suffering from Victor Redli. After playing his 150th game, he said smiling with a T-shirt while expanding the number of consumers he had faced during his career. Their club, Sydney RostersPosted a photo on Instagram before being removed later.

Even more concern is a new controversial activity called “” called “”run itIn which two men are running at full speed on each other with the intention of knocking the opponent.

recently A New Zealand teenager dies Runit has exposed the dangers.

What else can be done?

with the help of Rich heritage foundationExperts around the world, including themselves, have produced one CTE prevention protocolThis does not mean a ban on any sport, but to modify the components that will reduce exposure risk.

There are five ideas here that I believe that it will make a difference.

1. Reducing contact loads in training, especially in pre-season training.
2. Modify the contact game for children By the age of 14. It potentially removes six to eight years of accidental and unnecessary hits for children’s heads. They can still play and learn all fundamental motor skills and enjoy the psychological benefits of the game before graduating in the full version of the game at 14.
3. Impressive media commentators need to raise themselves around CTE and do not be afraid to mention CTE instead of underlining “Consent Protocol”.
4. Medical and allid health practitioners do not screen regular convention or sports playing history while assessing a patient, which is suffering from movement disorders, chronic headaches/fatigue or cognitive/behavioral loss. Repeated head effects history should be screening the same as the history of alcohol and drug use.
5. When an athlete dies suddenly and tragically, we need to include emergency support lines, along with information about those indefinite and support for support.

Unfortunately, if we do not have the political will not to accept CTE and work, more family will hurt the tragic deaths of athletes. These families cannot even know about CTE.

It does not make me anti-sport, but is a pro-athlete. Let us all become supportive athletes for our sports and people playing them.

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