David Mackie has suffered two major concussions in his football career. He says he’s lucky they haven’t ended his career in the Canadian Football League, but it’s something that weighs heavily on his mind.
“It’s something we’re always cognizant about for player safety and it’s not only going to affect your current career but also your life down the road,” noted the Canadian fullback for the B.C. Lions.
In the first part of a new series called Safety First: IH’s Guide to Safe Sport, Interior Health looks at concussions: their impacts and how to prevent them. The B.C. Lions being in Kamloops for their annual training camp ahead of the 2023 CFL season was a perfect opportunity to ask the players and coaches about concussions and sports safety.
Lions’ defensive end David Menard has also had a pair of major concussions during his time playing football as a young kid, then in university with Université de Montréal, and in the pros.
“I take them very seriously. It’s a real problem. It’s not just a myth,” said Menard, who’s in his ninth year in the league.
An 'invisible injury'
Interior Health notes concussions are hard to track as an ‘invisible injury’ that is under-reported due to a lack of public awareness and home management.
However, IH’s Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Lead Megan Klammer says emergency department visits from concussions have been increasing since 2013 , not necessarily due to more concussion cases, but more awareness about the injury. Sport related concussions in our IH region that result in hospitalization are higher in the summer from May to August, than the rest of the year.
Off-road cycling and ATV use is the leading cause of sports related hospitalizations within the Interior between June and September.
Concussion awareness
- You don’t have to be hit in the head to get a concussion. It may be an impact elsewhere on the body that transmits an impulsive force to the brain.
- Symptoms may be delayed for hours or even days.
- 70 to 80 per cent of young people with a concussion recover within four weeks.
- Children have longer recover times than adults.
- Up to 30 per cent of people with a concussion will experience persistent symptoms.
Concussion preparedness and management
- Sporting organizations should have a Sport Concussion Protocol with management and return to play guidelines based on national standards with awareness of Rowan’s Law and second impact syndrome.
- Recognition is pivotal to recovery. The Concussion Awareness Training Tool helps you to educate yourself on concussion prevention, recognition, diagnosis and management. Take this training to learn how to immediately recognize and manage concussion symptoms.
Advice for amateur athletes
As for amateur athletes gearing up for their seasons, the Lions advise you to do your research on concussions and be smart.
“You’ve got to take it seriously, especially when you’re younger. If you get a big hit, your head is hurting, you’re seeing stars, take that very seriously, especially as you’re young, still growing up,” said Menard. “It’s a very serious injury, even though we don’t see it. There are no X-Rays we can do like with a broken bone. It’s something we’ve got to take seriously.”
Lions head coach Rick Campbell added, “Sports always have some risk and I think you want to be educated on what the risks are, how you can best protect yourself. Knowing that people keep learning more and more on how to treat it, how to diagnose it, how to take care of it. Those are all those decisions in life on the risks and rewards of certain things and we all want to be as smart as we can, and at the same time have fun playing sports because it’s a good thing.”
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