Football players at highest risk for brain injuries

Dan Deuterman

Contributor

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A California teen who suffered a massive brain injury while playing football has plenty of company: Football induces the most brain injuries of any sport in the United States.

Scott Eveland, 17, of San Marcos, CA was injured during a recent high school football game. The only signs he was injured was appearing dazed and stumbling. He remains in a coma in critical condition.

The very nature of the world of competitive sports may cause coaches and parents to send injured kids back out on the field before they're healed. And in other cases, they may fail to even notice warning signs of a brain injury.

Parents and coaches need to be vigilant. Concussions, even mild, may not show up on a medical imaging test and can be pre-cursors to serious brain injury. Signs of a concussion include nausea, fatigue, headaches, and oversensitivity to light. Concussions can also be more dangerous in adolescent athletes because the young brain is not fully formed and the skull is thinner.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Head and Brain Injury.