Emergency Room Visits For Sports-Related Concussions Rise

Havonnah Johnson, News 9

MIDWEST CITY, Oklahoma -- It's a sound that makes us all cringe--a head on head collision on the football field.

According to a recent study published by the Centers For Disease Control, 4.4 million children play tackle football.  Of those, 500,000 suffer concussions annually.

New helmets may help get some hurt players off the bench. They are concussion resistant, according to a salesman at Twid's Sporting Goods in Midwest City.

"When I played, it was with the foam.  Nothing is ever going to stop a concussion but the new technology will have concussion resistance. When (the helmet) hits, it is pushed out like a shoulder pad instead of getting a direct hit (to the head)," John Carter of Twid's said.

Experts say injuries don't just happen at the 50-yard line, but bicycling, playground activities, basketball and soccer players are prone to head injuries.

It is something Dorothy Manship knows all too well.  Her son was kneed in the head during a baseball game.

"It tore like the brain stem and he couldn't remember where I was and he kept asking me the same the questions. That went on for about two days," she said.

The effects of concussions are receiving increased attention, which is why emergency room visits are up.  So, with awareness and new technology, the risk of teens getting their lights knocked out under the Friday night lights should decrease in coming years.