The fall high school sports season is swinging into full gear around Iowa and parents, athletes and coaches are being reminded about the serious nature of concussions. Julie Hill of Lisbon started a concussion clinic at Lisbon High School after a traumatic experience involving her son.
“He got his first concussion in 8th grade. It happened during a football game,” Hill said. “He didn’t leave the game. We really didn’t know until afterwards when he told us he didn’t remember playing most of the game.” Following that incident, Hill’s son received another concussion during practice. He no longer plays football.
Iowa recently changed its own laws to handle concussions, a brain injury that occurs when the brain hits against the skull. Coaches and officials are now required to take a player with concussion symptoms out of a game immediately. The athlete then needs to be cleared by a medical professional before playing again. Jim Schultz is Lisbon’s athletic director.
It’s a very serious situation and out athletes need to come forward to parents and coaches and tell them they are having problems,” Schultz said. Lisbon’s athletic trainer, Michael Reiling, says medical professionals have learned more in recent years about the dangers of sports related brain injuries. The long-term damage can impact vision, speech and memory.
“We have great MRIs and CT Scans and we can see that damage that occurred and what happens to that nerve tissue,” Reiling explained. A concussion seminar was held at Lisbon High School Tuesday night. Only a few parents attended, but organizers say they plan to hold another concussion clinic soon.
By Jillian Petrus, KCRG-TV, Cedar Rapids