Studies show brain damage after 1 season highschool football

[dragon]

Maybe that explains why so many football players are jerks.

High School Football Players Show Brain Changes after One Season


"This study adds to the growing body of evidence that a season of play in a contact sport can affect the brain in the absence of clinical findings," said Christopher T. Whitlow, M.D., Ph.D., M.H.A., associate professor of radiology at Wake Forest School of Medicine and radiologist at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C.

A number of reports have emerged in recent years about the potential effects playing youth sports may have on developing brains. However, most of these studies have looked at brain changes as a result of concussion. Dr. Whitlow and colleagues set out to determine if head impacts acquired over a season of high school football produce white matter changes in the brain in the absence of clinically diagnosed concussion.

The researchers studied 24 high school football players between the ages of 16 and 18. For all games and practices, players were monitored with Head Impact Telemetry System (HITs) helmet-mounted accelerometers, which are used in youth and collegiate football to assess the frequency and severity of helmet impacts.

Risk-weighted cumulative exposure was computed from the HITs data, representing the risk of concussion over the course of the season. This data, along with total impacts, were used to categorize the players into one of two groups: heavy hitters or light hitters. There were nine heavy hitters and 15 light hitters. None of the players experienced concussion during the season.

All players underwent pre- and post-season evaluation with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) of the brain. DTI is an advanced MRI technique, which identifies microstructural changes in the brain's white matter.

The brain's white matter is composed of millions of nerve fibers called axons that act like communication cables connecting various regions of the brain. Diffusion tensor imaging produces a measurement, called fractional anisotropy (FA), of the movement of water molecules along axons. In healthy white matter, the direction of water movement is fairly uniform and measures high in fractional anisotropy. When water movement is more random, fractional anisotropy values decrease, suggesting microstructural abnormalities.

The results showed that both groups demonstrated global increases of FA over time, likely reflecting effects of brain development. However, the heavy-hitter group showed statistically significant areas of decreased FA post-season in specific areas of the brain, including the splenium of the corpus callosum and deep white matter tracts.

"Our study found that players experiencing greater levels of head impacts have more FA loss compared to players with lower impact exposure," Dr. Whitlow said. "Similar brain MRI changes have been previously associated with mild traumatic brain injury. However, it is unclear whether or not these effects will be associated with any negative long-term consequences."

Dr. Whitlow cautions that these findings are preliminary, and more study needs to be done.

Co-authors on the study are Naeim Bahrami, M.S., Elizabeth Davenport, M.S., Jillian Urban, B.S., Fatemeh Mokhtari, M.S., Mark A. Espeland, Ph.D., Youngkyoo Jung, Ph.D., Daryl A. Rosenbaum, M.D., Gerard A. Gioia, Ph.D., Alexander K. Powers, M.D., Joel Stitzel Jr., Ph.D., and Joseph A. Maldjian, M.D.

link

[Guardsman Bass]

That's not good for football. Imagine if there were a bunch of high profile lawsuits that ultimately resulted in the jacking-up of insurance costs for high schools that have football teams, resulting in a lot of schools dropping their teams. You wouldn't even need all of the schools in a particular area (or state) to drop their teams to severely damage the sport at that level.

Head injury related news for football just seems to get worse over time.

[Napoleon the Clown]

Are you shitting me? They wouldn't drop it, they'd drop other stuff first. If a kid getting maimed by an accidental cannon discharge at a high school football game results in the kid getting threats instead of sympathy, I think small-town America is more interested in FOOTBAAWL than they are in education or the well-being of students. There is no lack of stories about schools facing financial troubles building or upgrading stadiums for their teams, even while basic educational shit goes down the tubes because it can't get the money.


People might wring their hands about the brain injuries, but it'll end up getting ignored. The only time people in general notice is when someone gets badly injured. Gradual brain damage comes on too slow for anybody to notice unless they actually make a conscious effort to track things. Good luck suing when the only sign of "injury" is an MRI without any medical professionals demonstrating reduced cognitive abilities.

[Guardsman Bass]

That's why I included the "lawsuits" and "higher insurance costs" in my post. That might get high schools to start shutting down their football programs (outside of the South), in a way that an occasional accident won't.

Good luck suing when the only sign of "injury" is an MRI without any medical professionals demonstrating reduced cognitive abilities.

We'll see. The NFL itself had to settle a lawsuit with former players related to brain injuries. And the matter has gotten a lot more attention recently - some of the little leagues (such as Pop Warner) have heavily reduced the amount of contact allowed in practices due to head injury risks.

[Broomstick]

That's not good for football. Imagine if there were a bunch of high profile lawsuits that ultimately resulted in the jacking-up of insurance costs for high schools that have football teams, resulting in a lot of schools dropping their teams. You wouldn't even need all of the schools in a particular area (or state) to drop their teams to severely damage the sport at that level.

While it would not break my heart to see football diminish or even disappear, that's not going to happen for at least another generation.

Denial can be incredibly powerful. I know far too many people who dismiss the damage it does, saying the players knew what they were getting into, that they're compensated well for their pain, that having bad knees and health trouble later is a fair trade for all the wealth and prestige they get. Which, in my mind, doesn't square up with some of these guys blowing their own heads off later in life. Football enthusiasts go on about tradition and "toughening up" young men and so on and so forth. The destroyed lives in severe accidents are just accidents or tragic fate. The long term damage not seen for years is ignored.

[Simon_Jester]

While having back pain and knee pain for the rest of my life in exchange for millions of dollars and being able to retire when I'm 30-35 may not be a good deal, a sane person could think it's a good deal.

For the average high school football player, who will probably never even play college ball, let alone professionally... not so logical.

[Broomstick]

While having back pain and knee pain for the rest of my life in exchange for millions of dollars and being able to retire when I'm 30-35 may not be a good deal, a sane person could think it's a good deal.

I think a lot of those guys would be willing to make that trade, the bad knees/back/chronic pain issues have been known for decades, it's the dementia that makes it a no-go... which is why I think the NFL was not eager to inform the players of that particular side effect.

[dragon]

There's actually a lawsuit going on to make highschools take football head injuries more seriously

[biostem]

I highly doubt that Football will be removed from schools' sports programs. Heck, there has been a push to get cheer leading considered a sport so they will get insurance coverage from the school, but that hasn't happened, either.

If anything, the person or company that can come up with better head and neck protection will make a fortune, instead...

[Frank the Tank]

Seriously, guys... you are positively dripping with scorn for the "jerks" who want to play "FOOTBAAWL," when to anybody outside of this echo chamber you all sound like stereotypical angry nerd virgins from Revenge of the Nerds.

I played high school football; want to know why? Because it was FUN. It didn't get me any girls, or better grades, or college scholarships, but I had a lot of fun during fall quarter during high school. I played soccer in spring quarter, again because it was FUN.

I suspect that very little of the nonsense you guys are talking about - toughening up young men, or town pride, or any of the other reasons you're giving that drip of jealousy masked by scorn and derision - is the primary motivation for most high school football players. You all need to watch a little less Varsity Blues and let people enjoy their teen years without being so angry that yours were unpleasant.

[TheFeniX]

While having back pain and knee pain for the rest of my life in exchange for millions of dollars and being able to retire when I'm 30-35 may not be a good deal, a sane person could think it's a good deal.

My brother-in-law played for A&M, then went on to play lineman for two different pro-teams. He's in his 40s and is nowhere near retirement. Sure, he's got a lot of his money locked set to mature by the time he retires, but he was never rolling in cash. The big names make millions. The other guys make the minimum, which is nothing to sneeze at, but considering you never know where you'll end up in the country, that money can go fast. Especially when your family is depending on some (read: a shitload) of it.

Besides, you're looking at it from the perspective of someone who knows how to manage money. It's different when you're dirt poor, as in, you beg for food/shelter during vacation time in college because you have no money to buy food or take a trip home and your scholarship only covers the dormitory and cafeteria, which are closed during that time. And since taking any money from anyone is a good way to get the football Gods pissed enough to revoke your scholarship, you end up just begging.

You then go from a hobo playing college ball to making hundreds of thousands of dollars in the pros in an entirely different state, away from friends and family. Shit happens. 20 years later, you need cut-downs on both legs and insurance don't cover all that shit.

Seriously, guys... you are positively dripping with scorn for the "jerks" who want to play "FOOTBAAWL," when to anybody outside of this echo chamber you all sound like stereotypical angry nerd virgins from Revenge of the Nerds.

It's funny because the nerds didn't give two shits about the meatheads in that movie, you know, until they kept getting fucked with. You sound like a fucking moron. I was the "lol nerd" camera man for a year and a half. I would have lettered JV then Varsity and since my school district didn't break it out, it would have been the same patch as the actual players, which was a pretty big matter of contention among the "lol just for fun" sports players at my school. Like, enough of a deal that the Varsity and JV QB along with a few buds were giving me shit about it up until my friends on the team (of which I had many because I wasn't a tool) told them to fuck off.

I quit Junior year because I got my driver's license and a beat-up Cavalier: time to party.

I played high school football; want to know why? Because it was FUN. It didn't get me any girls, or better grades, or college scholarships, but I had a lot of fun during fall quarter during high school. I played soccer in spring quarter, again because it was FUN.

The point of soccer isn't to slam your head into objects over and over and over again. Something of which I saw shitloads of behind a camera lense. Watching players stumble/limp off the field, sit down for a few minutes, then get back out to practice more. Sure, all in good fun. Skateboarding would be less dangerous since the point isn't to fall on your head and when you get hurt only assholes tell you to walk it off. And no one cares about soccer..... because no one is releasing information about it killing people.... yea that.

You ever seen a grown man yelling at a kid who's on his knees because he's about to pass out "get up pussy, what are you, a woman? Only girls quit!"? I have. I saw a lot of shit like that. Ignoring the sexist bullshit, the kid kept pushing and ended up vomiting everywhere for his trouble, then got sent to the nurse. He was fine, but Texas Spring time is fucking brutal and heat stroke is a thing. Sure, yea: it's fun whatever. So are Roman Candle wars.

I suspect that very little of the nonsense you guys are talking about - toughening up young men, or town pride, or any of the other reasons you're giving that drip of jealousy masked by scorn and derision - is the primary motivation for most high school football players. You all need to watch a little less Varsity Blues and let people enjoy their teen years without being so angry that yours were unpleasant.

There's better ways to have fun that don't involve "lol nerds!!!" telling you it's causing permanent damage to yourself. Care to comment on that rather than try to turn this into some idiotic "you just hate us glorious football players, stupid nerds" horseshit?

[Jub]

Seriously, guys... you are positively dripping with scorn for the "jerks" who want to play "FOOTBAAWL," when to anybody outside of this echo chamber you all sound like stereotypical angry nerd virgins from Revenge of the Nerds.

I played high school football; want to know why? Because it was FUN. It didn't get me any girls, or better grades, or college scholarships, but I had a lot of fun during fall quarter during high school. I played soccer in spring quarter, again because it was FUN.

I suspect that very little of the nonsense you guys are talking about - toughening up young men, or town pride, or any of the other reasons you're giving that drip of jealousy masked by scorn and derision - is the primary motivation for most high school football players. You all need to watch a little less Varsity Blues and let people enjoy their teen years without being so angry that yours were unpleasant.

I myself am a sports fan, and if you look at the NFL thread currently running you'll see that others here are too. So I don't know where you get off saying that we're all just sports hating nerds.

Now onto the actually issues, the one currently being discussed is that playing even one season of full contact football at a relatively low level causes brain injuries on top of the bad knees, destroyed backs, and other physical problems that can arise from playing the game in high school. I for one think that maybe schools ought to focus on education and that we shouldn't be letting minors risk permanent brain damage playing a game.

One thing getting in the way of schools stepping back and taking a look at the issue seriously is that football culture in the US is a fucking monster. Seriously, some schools would rather cut band and art classes than take away funding from the football team and the NCAA is even worse pocketing millions while not allowing star college players to make a living off their athletic abilities. It's time the US takes a long hard look at their obsession with football and examines the long terms costs of this seemingly innocent game.

For the record, in case it changes anything. I'm more of a hockey fan, and while hockey isn't perfect, we're looking at ways to make the gamer safer and house level teams don't allow hitting period, while the more skilled leagues place a big emphasis on safe hitting. The the CHL major junior level one of my teams prospects was suspended ten games (roughly a 6th of his season) for a hit to the head and not only does he miss league games, he's also going to miss international world junior games as well, and I'm fine with this. If we can have an exciting sport while minimizing the long term physical impact these games have on the players I'm willing to accept a lot of changes and suspensions to my teams players to make that happen.

[Broomstick]

I played high school football; want to know why? Because it was FUN. It didn't get me any girls, or better grades, or college scholarships, but I had a lot of fun during fall quarter during high school. I played soccer in spring quarter, again because it was FUN.

Some kids do drugs because it's FUN. Some kids steal shit because it's FUN. "Fun" does not define whether or not an activity is safe or in the best interests of the person doing it.

I am glad you had your fun - hell, it's not like I haven't engaged hobbies and games that have significant inherent risk myself. I understand the appeal of teamwork, physical effort, and some controlled violence even if I'm not myself into football. However, what motivates the young men who are players is not the same thing motivating the adults who are profiting from what the players do.

[Thunderfire]

You ever seen a grown man yelling at a kid who's on his knees because he's about to pass out "get up pussy, what are you, a woman? Only girls quit!"?

Yes tough guy coaches were not uncommon when I was young(mid/late eighties). A few friends of mine had to deal with Werner Lorant a well known sadist. It is still possible to encounter this type of coach - especially among lower division teams.

[Frank the Tank]

It's funny because the nerds didn't give two shits about the meatheads in that movie, you know, until they kept getting fucked with. You sound like a fucking moron.

Congratulations for being overly literal.

I was the "lol nerd" camera man for a year and a half. I would have lettered JV then Varsity and since my school district didn't break it out, it would have been the same patch as the actual players, which was a pretty big matter of contention among the "lol just for fun" sports players at my school. Like, enough of a deal that the Varsity and JV QB along with a few buds were giving me shit about it up until my friends on the team (of which I had many because I wasn't a tool) told them to fuck off.

So... are you agreeing with my point (that your comments are based on jealousy, not actual concern for injuries), or disagreeing? Because you seem to have just reinforced my original point.

The point of soccer isn't to slam your head into objects over and over and over again. Something of which I saw shitloads of behind a camera lense. Watching players stumble/limp off the field, sit down for a few minutes, then get back out to practice more. Sure, all in good fun. Skateboarding would be less dangerous since the point isn't to fall on your head and when you get hurt only assholes tell you to walk it off. And no one cares about soccer..... because no one is releasing information about it killing people.... yea that.

The point of American football also isn't to "slam your head into objects over and over and over again." It's unfortunate that your high school experience was so traumatic, but your envy doesn't dictate whether other people get to play sports or not.

You ever seen a grown man yelling at a kid who's on his knees because he's about to pass out "get up pussy, what are you, a woman? Only girls quit!"? I have. I saw a lot of shit like that. Ignoring the sexist bullshit, the kid kept pushing and ended up vomiting everywhere for his trouble, then got sent to the nurse. He was fine, but Texas Spring time is fucking brutal and heat stroke is a thing. Sure, yea: it's fun whatever. So are Roman Candle wars.

Got it... anecdotes are now quantitative evidence. Since you personally witnessed people being assholes, that means all football players and all football coaches are all assholes, and they should have their footballs taken away so they can't play because they were also mean to you. Grow the fuck up, man, and stop regretting your teenage years.

There's better ways to have fun that don't involve "lol nerds!!!" telling you it's causing permanent damage to yourself. Care to comment on that rather than try to turn this into some idiotic "you just hate us glorious football players, stupid nerds" horseshit?

I'm fairly certain I never said anything about football players being "glorious;" but you continue to sound pathetically jealous of the football players in your high school. I completely understand that here at SDN you'll find a willing audience to support you and your rage against the football players, but it's really not healthy to carry so much angst into your adult years. I left high school behind 20 years ago - the good and the bad - maybe you should continue doing so as well. You do have a life to live, after all...

[TheFeniX]

So... are you agreeing with my point (that your comments are based on jealousy, not actual concern for injuries), or disagreeing? Because you seem to have just reinforced my original point.

The varsity QB being so butthurt a camera man was going to letter, he had to round up some boys to tell me they'd make sure I never got a jacket, makes me the jealous one. I was so jealous I quit months later for unrelated reasons. You found me out, I've been living a lie for the past 15 years.

The point of American football also isn't to "slam your head into objects over and over and over again." It's unfortunate that your high school experience was so traumatic, but your envy doesn't dictate whether other people get to play sports or not.

When it's proven to cause permanent brain damage? What would make you guys give up handegg? And I'm not attacking sports: I'm attacking those that seem designed to cripple the players. I feel the same way about Cheer/Cheerleading, but not Baseball (although it's hell on pitchers) or soccer.

I'm fairly certain I never said anything about football players being "glorious;" but you continue to sound pathetically jealous of the football players in your high school. I completely understand that here at SDN you'll find a willing audience to support you and your rage against the football players, but it's really not healthy to carry so much angst into your adult years. I left high school behind 20 years ago - the good and the bad - maybe you should continue doing so as well. You do have a life to live, after all...

This is funny considering your "u mad bro?" bullshit sounds like you're still in highschool.

[Thunderfire]

When it's proven to cause permanent brain damage? What would make you guys give up handegg? And I'm not attacking sports: I'm attacking those that seem designed to cripple the players. I feel the same way about Cheer/Cheerleading, but not Baseball (although it's hell on pitchers) or soccer.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/27/sport ... .html?_r=0
Soccer players suffer brain damage too.

[Elheru Aran]

I think it's probably safe to say that in any sport where you hit things with your head, be that another player's noggin or the ball, there's going to be negative results on occasion. Do this much more, there's going to be more negatives.

The article only goes into depth upon one soccer player and one rugby player, and points out that the soccer player made an extensive practice of heading the ball. It doesn't really compare to the large-scale results that we have had from the studies upon American football players recently.

[Simon_Jester]

Then again, a lot of the head injuries in football come from men crashing into each other at full speed, with the weight of their bodies behind the impacts.

Whereas in soccer you're bouncing your head off a hollow rubber ball.

That might well make a difference... although on the other hand the football player wears a helmet; the soccer player doesn't.

[Alyrium Denryle]

Seriously, guys... you are positively dripping with scorn for the "jerks" who want to play "FOOTBAAWL," when to anybody outside of this echo chamber you all sound like stereotypical angry nerd virgins from Revenge of the Nerds.

I played high school football; want to know why? Because it was FUN. It didn't get me any girls, or better grades, or college scholarships, but I had a lot of fun during fall quarter during high school. I played soccer in spring quarter, again because it was FUN.

I suspect that very little of the nonsense you guys are talking about - toughening up young men, or town pride, or any of the other reasons you're giving that drip of jealousy masked by scorn and derision - is the primary motivation for most high school football players. You all need to watch a little less Varsity Blues and let people enjoy their teen years without being so angry that yours were unpleasant.

Self reported motivation matters very very little. Something can be fun for a variety of reasons. People enjoy the activity itself, the social status that goes with participation (you may not have leveraged it, others on your team did, and this was fun for them), the atmosphere of competition, the shared ritual of watching games together etc etc. All of these can be important in local communities. Important enough that other more objectively important concerns (like making sure teenagers can do math) get tossed to the wayside. There is a reason the highest paid public employee in most states happens to be a university football coach, and why football teams at high school, university, and professional levels can readily get away with actual rape and murder.

We're social apes. We have baggage that goes along with being social apes.

...........................................................

Had you actually bothered to read, you will have noticed that the people here are concerned with the physical well being of football players. None of us want to see young people develop permanent brain damage. Not the least reason for which is because said brain damage tends to decrease impulse control and make football players into progressively bigger douche-canoes the longer they play. But there are direct reasons as well. Like thinking football players are people who should not be harmed with permanent brain damage because the adults who should be protecting them and ensuring their safety while engaged in "fun" activities are hip-deep in greed, nostalgia, and denial.

[TheFeniX]

That might well make a difference... although on the other hand the football player wears a helmet; the soccer player doesn't.

From what I know, the helmet isn't going to offer a lot of protection against concussions. Even though it spreads the energy out, it has to go somewhere, and that's into the skull. The helmet will protect from head injuries, but does little to keep your gray matter from sloshing around. There's also the side-effect of wearing a helmet leading to the idea you can take more punishment because it will protect you, so you might do something incredibly stupid, like force helmet-to-helmet contacts enough times the league has to ban it so you don't kill someone.

[LaCroix]

That might well make a difference... although on the other hand the football player wears a helmet; the soccer player doesn't.

From what I know, the helmet isn't going to offer a lot of protection against concussions. Even though it spreads the energy out, it has to go somewhere, and that's into the skull. The helmet will protect from head injuries, but does little to keep your gray matter from sloshing around. There's also the side-effect of wearing a helmet leading to the idea you can take more punishment because it will protect you, so you might do something incredibly stupid, like force helmet-to-helmet contacts enough times the league has to ban it so you don't kill someone.

Ball to head contact is something not common in football, and usually only concerns about half the team in any semi-regular form - defenders and offense. The mid-field rarely does.

Also, the ball is usally not taken in full brunt, but only deflected slightly, as in 'bouncing a long pass further along into the goal', 'angling a corner shot into the goal', or 'angling the shot away from the goal', in case of a defender. Trying to completely stop the ball with the head is a rare occurence, and that would be what causes the most damage.

[LaCroix]

That might well make a difference... although on the other hand the football player wears a helmet; the soccer player doesn't.

From what I know, the helmet isn't going to offer a lot of protection against concussions. Even though it spreads the energy out, it has to go somewhere, and that's into the skull. The helmet will protect from head injuries, but does little to keep your gray matter from sloshing around. There's also the side-effect of wearing a helmet leading to the idea you can take more punishment because it will protect you, so you might do something incredibly stupid, like force helmet-to-helmet contacts enough times the league has to ban it so you don't kill someone.

Full ball to head contact is something not too common in football, and usually only concerns about half the team in any semi-regular form - defenders and offense. The mid-field rarely does have much head contact.

The ball is usually not taken in full brunt, but only deflected slightly, as in 'bouncing a long pass further along into the goal', 'angling a corner shot into the goal', or 'angling the shot away from the goal', in case of a defender. Trying to completely stop the ball with the head is a rare occurence, and that would be what causes the most damage.

[salm]

There are studdies that show that headding the ball causes long term problems in professional soccer players. They head the ball about 1800 times a year, obviously not in games, but mainly in training.

[LaCroix]

There are studdies that show that headding the ball causes long term problems in professional soccer players. They head the ball about 1800 times a year, obviously not in games, but mainly in training.

Of course, but it's usually a problem for offense players, who do that more often.

Other than for American Football players, it's very rare for Football players not to reach average ages, healthy and mostly with their wits still intact (Jokes about offensive players not being the brightest guys do not exist for no reason... ).
The amount of damage inflicted by headding is definitley orders of magnitude lower than the permanent semi or full concussions you get by repeatedly slamming into each other at full speed every few minutes.