The National Football League and other governing football bodies has come under scrutiny of former players and parents who want there to be more guidelines when it comes to dealing with concussions in players.

Several players and doctors have come forward with their experience on how sports-related brain injuries were diagnosed and treated within the season.  Many officials want stricter regulations on returning to the field similar to a law in Washington that states players with concussions need written consent from a licensed medical official before returning to play.

Our brain injury lawyers applaud the attention being paid to this growing problem for football players past and present.  Playing with a concussion or symptoms (aka “post-concussion syndrome” or PCS) can cause a second concussion to occur easier than the first.

A lot of governing sports bodies are already taking their own steps to ensure the safety of players, but our brain injury attorneys know there is much more that should be done (i.e. better equipment).  This House Judiciary Committee serves as a kind of wake up call to people high in the chain of command.

One player — Houston Texans offensive lineman Chester Pitts — told the committee he wants his son to have nothing to do with football, that the game is too rough for him.  Another player, former Rice University running back Trevor Cobb, told the committee that he believed he has suffered at least six concussions in high school, college and pro football.  He remembers only being held out of the next series of plays before playing again.

Players aren’t the only ones coming out to voice their opinions, but prominent doctors are as well.  One doctor, a neuropathologist and co-founder and director of the Brain Injury Research Institute at West Virginia University, has said there is a link between concussions suffered playing football and brain damage seen in players.  The doctor got credit for documenting the first case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in a pro player.  Mike Webster, a former Pittsburgh Steelers center, suffered from dementia and depression for years before dying in 2002, and this doctor made the connection to brain damage.

“Every blow to the head is dangerous,” the doctor said.  “Repeated concussions and subconcussions both have the capacity to cause permanent brain damage.”

Our brain injury lawyers in San Diego look at this issue from the perspective of a parent, most importantly.  We believe that if our sons or daughters played a sport where the possibility of a serious brain injury could happen, we’d want our children to be taken out of the game immediately until proper medical clearance is made.

Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced San Diego brain injury attorney — we speak both English and Spanish — at (800) 655-6585.  Click here and you may also submit your case for a Free Review. No fee if no recovery.

YOUR TAKE

If you’re a parent or a player (past or present), how important is a career if there is a possibility you could be living with brain damage for your career after playing?