Head Games: The Dark Side of Football Part 8

Professional athletes have doctors and trainers surrounding them, watching for injuries. But when it comes to youth sports, many are not taken care of the same way the pros are.

FOX News Radio’s Jessica Rosenthal reports in the eighth installment of our ten-part series investigating the growing concern about concussions in the sport:

In 2006, a middle school boy named Zachary Lystedt returned to a football game too soon after a concussion, and he collapsed after receiving what’s called a “second impact injury.”  He had to have two brain surgeries and still suffers today.  After that, Washington state passed the Lystedt Law.  Many states now have laws addressing children’s sports injuries.

(Pulice) “If I had to name the real catalyst, I think it’s been all the attention paid to the National Football League.”

Judy Pulice is with the National Athletic Trainers Association, and speaking of athletic trainers, that’s what orthopedic surgeon Clarence Shields says should be at every child’s athletic event.

(Dr. Shields) “An athletic trainer is a trained medical professional.  It’s different than the trainer that works at the health club.”

Rachel Meadow is the AT at Carson High in southern California.  She says not only can she identify an injury, but she’s been working at Carson for four years now.

(Meadow) “Most of them know me pretty well, and I think that I’ve scared the living wits out of them about the repercussions of a second impact.”

NATA says 42% of schools have access to an athletic trainer.

Jessica Rosenthal, FOX News Radio.

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