Rugby League Week - Conscious Decisions
Transcript of Rugby League Week - Conscious Decisions
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8/4/2019 Rugby League Week - Conscious Decisions
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22 G Rugby League Week
CHANGES TO THE CONCUSSION
rules in the NRL came not a moment
too soon.
Once considered a trivial injury
by some, concussion is in actuality a seriouscondition requiring immediate and ongoing
assessment before a player can be deemed
fully recovered and ready to train and play.
To witness a concussion can be quite
shocking. Like many of you, I watched with
bewilderment the round three footage of
an apparently concussed and obviously
disoriented Richie Faaoso returning to the
field twice for Newcastle.
It was reported that team officials
mistakenly believed that an interchange could
not be made during a scrum.
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Clearly a more stringent test needs to be
applied before any player is allowed to return
to the field after taking a head knock.
The NRLs Chief Medical Officer, Dr Ron
Muratore, has been integral in bringing change
to the sports concussion rules as returning to
play after a concussion poses further serious
risk to a players health.
If they go back after having a head injury,
they have a 10-fold chance of a second head
injury, the second injury can be worse than thefirst and they can be cumulative, he says.
An incident such as the one seen with
Faaoso is unlikely to happen in the future
DR JODIRICHARDSONSPORTS SCIENCE
CONSCIOUS
DECISIONSas teams are now clearer on the scrum
interchange rules and an important and
necessary change to the NRL concussion rule
has been implemented.
Up until now the Consensus Statement on
Concussion in Sport says if the player recovers,
you can let them go back , Muratore continues.
On further discussion, we felt we should
be more conservative so the only real change
is that if a player is definitely concussed, they
probably shouldnt be allowed to go back thesame day.
He adds that more than just the rules around
concussion need to change.
Theres a culture in rugby league that
youre a wuss if youre a bit dazed and you
want to go off. Up until now people have said
that if youre able to run and tack le, you should
keep going. They treat head injuries as a trivial
injury, he says. We need to educate people tounderstand that a head injury is just as bad as
any other injury and possibly worse.
Concussion comes from a Latin word
meaning to shake violently.
With some players weighing in excess of
100 kilos and others reaching speeds of over
30 km/h, its no wonder that some players
experience concussion with the forces resulting
from large masses colliding at high speeds.
Though the brain is cushioned from minor
impacts by surrounding fluid, if the head is
caused to move suddenly then stop, the brain
also moves suddenly then collides with the
inside of the hard bony skull. Dr. Muratoreexplains that this can cause physiological and
biochemical changes in the brain.
Concussion can be caused by, a blow to
the head, neck or body where the force is
transferred to the head. The symptoms of
concussion include headache, dizziness, loss
of consciousness, loss of memory, irritability,
slowed reaction times and sleep disturbance.
In the NRL, the final decision on return to
play rests with the medical team.
Dr Muratore clarifies that there is no set time
for recovery from concussion but it generally
takes seven to 10 days to become symptom
free; sometimes longer for young kids.He emphasises that it is imperative that
coaches and parents are well informed about
the seriousness of these injuries, and that at a
junior level, where doctors are not likely to be
available for immediate assessment; if a player
is concussed they should not return to play and
should be assessed by a doctor before even
returning to training. He adds that there is no
evidence that protective headgear reduces the
rate of concussion.
Though research is ongoing, possible links
between repeated sport-related concussion
and increased risk of clinical depression,
cognitive dysfunction, dementia, Alzheimersdisease and Parkinsons disease are under
examination.
Former Melbourne Demons AFL player
Daniel Bell is seeking compensation for brain
damage linked to his history of concussions.
Far from trivial, concussion is a type of
traumatic brain injury with the potential for
severe consequences for long term player
health.
Former league players are encouraged
to seek help if they experience cognitive
impairment beginning to take a hold.
Whyconcussionissomuchmore than justa trivial injury
RISKY BUSINESS: Richie Faaoso washeavily concussed in the Knights roundthree clash with the Sea Eagles; andDallas Johnson (right) out for the countin Origin Three, 2007.
We need to educate people to understanda head injury is just as bad as any other
injury and possibly worse. DR RON MURATORE
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