Twenty-seven-year-old Will Pucovski was forced to quit cricket after suffering multiple concussions in his career. The Australian played just one Test, 36 First Class Games and 14 List A matches.
According to a report published by the Associated Press Pucovski suffered as many as 13 concussions as a cricketer. His most recent concussion was during a Sheffield Shield match between Victoria and Tasmania when he was hit on the helmet by a ball and was forced to retire hurt.
Almost a year ago ESPNCRICINFO wrote that Victoria, Pucovski’s domestic team, was granted a special exemption from Cricket Australia regarding his contract status as his concussion-related assessment with a medical panel was pushed back due to the fact he had suffered extended symptoms from the concussion he suffered in the Sheffield Shield match.
“The simple message is, I won’t be playing at any level again,” Pucovski told the SEN network. “In the couple of months post that (last concussion) I struggled to get anything done, walking around the house was a struggle … I was sleeping a lot. The first few months were horrendous, but things didn’t leave me.
“From there it’s been a tough year, a lot of the symptoms didn’t go away, which has led me to this decision.”
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So how does a concussion affect an athlete?
According to a 2014 research paper titled “An Introduction to Sports Concussions” published by Christopher C Giza and Jeffrey S Kutcher, concussion is a “clinical syndrome of symptoms and signs occurring after biomechanical force is imparted to the brain.”
The paper mentioned that anywhere between 1.6 and 3.8 million sports-related concussions are estimated in the United States annually. Further the Center for Disease Control, the national public health agency of the United States, estimates that 5-10% of athletes experience a concussion in any given sports season.
The symptoms of concussions are headache, dizziness, nausea, confusion, memory impairment, imbalance, and behavioral changes.
An article titled “Concussion in Athletes” published by the University of Michigan Health states that any athlete who has suffered from concussion should be removed from their game or practice and should be seen by a health care provider who is trained in the care of concussion.
Athletes who have suffered concussion can also show post-concussion symptoms like headache, nausea, dizziness, confusion, memory impairment, in-coordination, attention problems, and behavioral changes.
Giza and Kutcher in their study found out that male athletes sustain more concussions than females. The two doctors also investigated the sports in which the athletes are at higher risk of suffering the injury. They found out that in in males, the highest-risk sports are football (American Football), rugby, ice hockey, and wrestling. The female athletes have the highest risk of suffering concussion in soccer and basketball. The research concluded that the sports like boxing and mixed martial arts, where conventional wisdom suggests that concussion would be more frequent, do not have good published data in order to determine concussion rates.
What can be done to avoid concussion?
A study titled “Prevention of sports-related concussion in soccer” concluded that use of helmets/headgear, enforcing proper heading technique, putting in place proper tackling technique, limiting contact training during training, enforcing rules that prohibit collisions with the head and other potentially unsafe behavior and training are some of the precautions to avoid concussions. Educating athletes on concussion by medical professionals, also plays a significant role in limiting the injury.
Disclaimer:
The information provided in this article is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, including concussions or other sports-related injuries. The views expressed by individuals quoted in this article are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of any official health or sports organization.
Prakhar Sachdeo
The Sportz Planet Desk
