High School Athletes and Concussions
by Lindsey Fox

High school sports are a great way for teens to stay healthy. They also provide lifelong lessons that allow students to succeed later in life. Studies have shown that students who participate in sports have greater self-confidence and leadership, higher grades, and more restraint in avoiding risky behavior than those who do not play sports. However, those who participate in athletics are at risk of sports-related injuries. Approximately 200,000 sports-related brain injuries, such as concussions, occur each year. These head injuries most often occur among football players. Football players receive head injuries 45 percent more often than players in girls' soccer, which has the second highest rate of concussions. Because high school sports are at their highest rate of participation, preventive measures should be implemented to decrease concussion rates to the lowest possible levels.

Educating Coaches About Concussions
Concussions can occur after a fall or from players hitting into each other with their bodies or with equipment, such as a goalpost. The possibility for concussions is greatest in sports where collisions are most common. Unfortunately, many coaches and athletic trainers misdiagnose players who may have concussions. This can lead to long-term brain injuries for players.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) created an educational toolkit called "Heads-Up: Concussion in High School Sports." The toolkit helps coaches, athletic trainers, parents, and athletes identify and respond to a concussion. This is the first time that a federal agency has developed a concussion toolkit for high school coaches. The training program needs to be mandatory for all people involved in a sport. Also, a health care professional should assess an athlete with a suspected concussion.

Ensuring Rest Time for Injured Athletes
A 2014 study by the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that players who return to sports before the brain recovers from a concussion increase the likelihood of having long-term health problems. Injured athletes need physical rest and cognitive rest. Teachers need to make adjustments for an athlete who has had a concussion by limiting their cognitive challenges. Research has shown that athletes should not return to physical activities until their symptoms have returned to normal baseline levels. Athletes often feel frustrated, sad, and even angry because they cannot return to sports right away. It is important for coaches, parents, and medical professionals to offer support to these athletes.

Understanding Long-Term Health Effects of Concussions
Research has found that long-term effects of concussions can be problems with decision-making, increased aggression, and even diseases such as dementia, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's. The National Football League has estimated that nearly one-third of former players will likely develop forms of dementia or other debilitating disorders due to head injuries while playing football. Many injured players are ignoring the growing body of evidence that once the brain has been injured, it never returns to 100 percent. It is also important for coaches, players, and parents to understand that multiple head injuries can have long-term effects on a player.

According to the CDC, emergency departments treat an average of 200,000 sports-related brain injuries among children and adolescents each year. This is an increase of 60 percent over the past decade. Clearly, high school sports participation is on the rise. We need to ensure that coaches are educated about responding to concussions, players are getting adequate recovery time after a concussion, and everyone involved in sports understands the long-term effects of sports-related brain injuries.

Which two claims are supported by the information in the passage?
A. Concussions are the deadliest injury on Earth.
B. Concussions are largely prevalent in high school athletes.
C. Students should avoid athletic events, as they could lead to concussions.
D. Following an injury, athletes should rest until their symptoms return to normal levels.
E. Diseases like dementia, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's occur only after a head injury.