Concussions In Professional Sports: A Case Study

The purpose of this study was to determine the knowledge and opinions on concussions of high school coaches from a geographi- cally large yet rural state in the northern Rocky Mountains of the United States. Few medical issues in sport are more important, or have had as much publicity recently, as concussions. The exposure gleaned from tragic health issues among professional athletes post- concussion has motivated college and professional sport agencies to modify and enact strict guidelines in the diagnosis and treatment of suspected concussions. Yet underdiagnosis and mistreatment by some (former University of Michigan coach in 2014) highlight the need for continued education and enforcement of the current guide- lines. Obviously, when a head
coach from a major NCAA Division I university still places an athlete’s health in jeopardy by disregarding a head injury, it is imperative that coaches’ knowledge of concus- sions in smaller, more rural and remote programs is considered as well. We used a commercial electronic product to survey coaches across the state. Coaches responded voluntarily with their opinions and their current knowledge of issues related to concussions.