ForumSports neurology
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Football neurology
For 15 years, I worked as a doctor for a team that played in the Australian national “Aussie rules” football competition. Since then, although not constrained by a single team commitment, I have continued to look after individuals at an international level in rugby league, rugby union, and soccer.
My first, and in many ways most memorable, moment came in my very first match as a team doctor. At that time, I was an inexperienced medical graduate who had just completed his internship. A colleague
Dealing with neurological injuries in sports: boxing under debate
Since 1990, when the Dutch Government set up strict rules for health issues in contact sports, I have been involved in mandatory annual neuropsychological testing of all professional and top-ranked amateur boxers in the Netherlands. I would like to discuss several difficult neurological health issues in boxers (figure 2)—acute brain injury, the insidious process of boxing dementia, the detection of chronic brain injury in boxers at a very early stage, prevention of cumulative chronic brain
Concussion severity should not be determined until all postconcussion symptoms have abated
Concussion is the most common sport-related head injury. Today, sport-related concussion is a widely recognised major public-health concern in the USA and worldwide. Initially, it was thought that concussion produced only a temporary disturbance of brain function caused by neuronal, chemical, or neuroelectrical changes without structural change. We now know that structural damage with loss of brain cells does occur with some concussions.
In the past decade, the neurobiology of cerebral
Neurological problems in breath-hold diving
Snorkelling and breath-hold diving are enjoyed by millions of people around the world. Although most people dive to a few meters below the surface for less than 1 min at a time, dives to depths of 30 m or more, lasting 1–2 mins, are routine for spear-fishermen during competitions. There are also a few elite breath-hold divers (figure 3) who constantly try to outdo each other in order to establish depth records, which have recently exceeded 150 m. These deep record dives typically last 3–3·5
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Cited by (8)
School and the Concussed Youth: Recommendations for Concussion Education and Management
2011, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North AmericaCitation Excerpt :In humans, a retrospective chart review found that higher levels of cognitive and physical activity during recovery were associated with greater neurocognitive deficits and higher symptom reports.20 Concussion management guidelines have begun to appreciate the effects of cognitive exertion on concussion symptoms and management,3,4 and the process of academic return is gaining attention in scientific literature, the press, and legislation. Careful management of neurometabolic demands on the brain during recovery, including what is needed for cognitive activity, must avoid exceeding the threshold that produces symptom exacerbation.
Sport-related concussion research agenda beyond medical science: Culture, ethics, science, policy
2023, Journal of Medical EthicsThinking outside the Ring of Concussive Punches: Reimagining Boxing
2022, Sport, Ethics and PhilosophyRole of baseline testing
2018, Return to Play in Football: An Evidence-based Approach