Prof: Concussion damage unknown

No two concussions are the same, and the percent of those that result in permanent brain damage is unknown, according to a lecture on head injuries in sports by a visiting University of Georgia professor.
Michael Ferrara, athletic training program director at UGA and a co-author of more than 50 journal article on sports injuries, spoke to about 200 students Monday night. Ferrara titled his lecture "Concussion: Myths and Facts Regarding Head Injuries in Sports."

"You don’t have to be unconscious to have a concussion," Ferrara said, stressing that the general public has several misconceptions about concussions and their severity.

Clinical signs of concussions include headaches, feeling dizzy, feeling "in fog," feeling "slowed down," difficulty concentrating or falling asleep, drowsiness or having difficulty balancing, he said.

Once exhibiting signs of a concussion, Ferrara stressed that it is important to have a proper evaluation by a doctor and/or certified athletic trainer through physical examinations, exertional tests, self-reported symptoms, neurocognitive functions, posturography and imaging studies.

Concussions account for about 5 percent of the total injuries both in high school and college football, and the most significant injuries are to the side of the head and the facemask region where you can’t see the blow coming, he said.

Ferrara was invited to speak at JMU because he recently completed work on a position statement in the field, according to Connie Peterson, a former colleague of Ferrara’s. The goal was to increase awareness of concussions.

As "an athlete that has had multiple concussions. I thought it was very informative and liked learning about the various treatments and tests done on athletes in recovery," senior Mary Beth Culbertson said.

Graduate student Mary Katherine Martin — a former student of Ferrara’s at UGA — said it "was helpful for my profession to review what a concussions is and when to let athletes go back to the field of play. There is more research going in, so there is more interest — there are many misconceptions."