Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Kids and concussions: The dilemma facing a doctor

John Frankeny, MD
Conditions
January 17, 2014
182 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

As an orthopedic surgeon, I’m acutely aware of the data and conversations surrounding sports-induced concussions, particularly in football. Encouragingly, the medical community is experimenting with proper treatment, diagnosis, and assessing the long-term effects of concussions; recently the NIH announced details of how it would begin using a sizable grant from the NFL for just this purpose. Yet preventing them continues to be a challenge not just at the professional athlete level, but also among school-aged children.

Recently, I was confronted by a parent — asking point-blank — would I allow my own child to play organized sports, given the inherent risk of injury, especially concussions? Did I feel these sports did enough to sufficiently protect young athletes from life-altering injuries? In other words, do I believe that the risk — now — outweigh the rewards that come with organized athletics?

For a physician who specializes in sports medicine, it’s a tricky question. The doctor in me is acutely aware of the risks, yet also strongly believes in the positive impacts of organized sports on the mental and physical well-being of children and adults. As an individual, I’m intensely mindful of my loved ones’ well-being, yet these sports are in so many ways deeply tied to our children’s (and our own) cultural and social world.

After some grappling, I thought of the rule of 86. That is, when you are 86-years-old and look back at your life, what events will matter the most? For the majority of us, whether we played high school football would probably only top the list if we experienced the lifetime residuals that can occur after a concussion.

Yet even for a doctor immersed in this information, it’s tough to force a child to the sidelines. So my final answer looked something like this. If my son were passionate about playing football I would let him. However, we would start with a discussion of the risks and end with an agreement. If he would experience even a single episode of confusion, loss of consciousness, or any signs or symptoms of a concussion as result of impact, he would retire from the game, no arguments.

I also polled Timothy Ackerman, DO, a colleague of mine at the PinnacleHealth Sports Medicine program. Tim has three children and I wanted to see if our responses differed:

I have three young boys and two of them are old enough to be participating in organized sports. As they advance through the stages of sporting activities, there will be more risk associated with particular sporting events. I feel that participation in sporting activities is an integral part of a child’s development and I would encourage their participation. Yet I would discuss the risks associated with their sport as well as injury prevention, and I would have the discussion with my son about retiring from a concussion prone sport after his first concussion.

So often in this profession, our work takes place after an event — be it an injury or an illness — when the die is already cast. Yet as research and knowledge on how to reduce risk of disease or serious accidents proliferates (and spreads online and through social media), the prevention question is bound to be increasingly common. And sometimes, the answer is far from clear-cut. How have you responded when confronted with this kind of query from a patient?

John Frankeny is an orthopedic surgeon at the Orthopedic Institute of Pennsylvania and founding member, PinnacleHealth’s Sports Medicine Program.  He blogs at The Doctor Blog.

Prev

Thoughts after being diagnosed with cancer

January 17, 2014 Kevin 6
…
Next

When medicine gives you PTSD

January 17, 2014 Kevin 8
…

Tagged as: Neurology, Pediatrics

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Thoughts after being diagnosed with cancer
Next Post >
When medicine gives you PTSD

More in Conditions

  • Unlocking the secret to successful weight loss: Curiosity is the key

    Franchell Hamilton, MD
  • The teacher who changed my life through reading

    Raymond Abbott
  • Revaluating mental health assessments: It’s not just the patient you should consider

    Tomi Mitchell, MD
  • Breaking down barriers: How technology is improving diabetes management in underserved communities

    Anonymous
  • Yoga and self-care won’t cure my Crohn’s disease

    Kristen L. Cole
  • What causes fainting and how to prevent it during needle procedures

    Jean Paul Brutus, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Resetting the doctor-patient relationship: Navigating the challenges of modern primary care

      Jeffrey H. Millstein, MD | Physician
    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • Healing the damaged nurse-physician dynamic

      Angel J. Mena, MD and Ali Morin, MSN, RN | Policy
    • From physician to patient: one doctor’s journey to finding purpose after a devastating injury

      Stephanie Pearson, MD | Physician
    • Lifestyle change: the forgotten solution in health care

      Tyler Petersen | Conditions
    • An unspoken truth about non-compete clauses in medicine

      Harry Severance, MD | Policy
  • Past 6 Months

    • The hidden dangers of the Nebraska Heartbeat Act

      Meghan Sheehan, MD | Policy
    • The fight for reproductive health: Why medication abortion matters

      Catherine Hennessey, MD | Physician
    • The vital importance of climate change education in medical schools

      Helen Kim, MD | Policy
    • Resetting the doctor-patient relationship: Navigating the challenges of modern primary care

      Jeffrey H. Millstein, MD | Physician
    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • Why are doctors sued and politicians aren’t?

      Kellie Lease Stecher, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Finding peace through surrender: a personal exploration

      Dympna Weil, MD | Physician
    • The struggle to fill emergency medicine residency spots: Exploring the factors behind the unfilled match

      Katrina Gipson, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Unlocking the secret to successful weight loss: Curiosity is the key

      Franchell Hamilton, MD | Conditions
    • The teacher who changed my life through reading

      Raymond Abbott | Conditions
    • Revaluating mental health assessments: It’s not just the patient you should consider

      Tomi Mitchell, MD | Conditions
    • Beyond the disease: the power of empathy in health care

      Nana Dadzie Ghansah, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 1 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • Supporting the Mental Wellness of Physicians
  • Can Mothers Pass Obesity on to Daughters?
  • Strategies to Inform and Advance Rational Vaccine Design
  • Parkinson's Tied to Common Chemical; Injectable Brain Implants; Migraine Drug Recall
  • Ozempic Back on Shelves; More Positive Fezolinetant Data; Caffeine Cuts Fat?

Meeting Coverage

  • Trial of Novel TYK2 Inhibitor Hits Its Endpoint in Plaque Psoriasis
  • Durable Vitiligo Responses With Topical Ruxolitinib
  • High Rates of Psoriasis Clearance With Investigational TYK2 Inhibitor
  • Rapid Improvement in Atopic Dermatitis With Topical PDE4 Inhibitor
  • New Approaches in the Bladder-Sparing Paradigm
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Resetting the doctor-patient relationship: Navigating the challenges of modern primary care

      Jeffrey H. Millstein, MD | Physician
    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • Healing the damaged nurse-physician dynamic

      Angel J. Mena, MD and Ali Morin, MSN, RN | Policy
    • From physician to patient: one doctor’s journey to finding purpose after a devastating injury

      Stephanie Pearson, MD | Physician
    • Lifestyle change: the forgotten solution in health care

      Tyler Petersen | Conditions
    • An unspoken truth about non-compete clauses in medicine

      Harry Severance, MD | Policy
  • Past 6 Months

    • The hidden dangers of the Nebraska Heartbeat Act

      Meghan Sheehan, MD | Policy
    • The fight for reproductive health: Why medication abortion matters

      Catherine Hennessey, MD | Physician
    • The vital importance of climate change education in medical schools

      Helen Kim, MD | Policy
    • Resetting the doctor-patient relationship: Navigating the challenges of modern primary care

      Jeffrey H. Millstein, MD | Physician
    • Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?

      Katie Klingberg, MD | Physician
    • Why are doctors sued and politicians aren’t?

      Kellie Lease Stecher, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Finding peace through surrender: a personal exploration

      Dympna Weil, MD | Physician
    • The struggle to fill emergency medicine residency spots: Exploring the factors behind the unfilled match

      Katrina Gipson, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Unlocking the secret to successful weight loss: Curiosity is the key

      Franchell Hamilton, MD | Conditions
    • The teacher who changed my life through reading

      Raymond Abbott | Conditions
    • Revaluating mental health assessments: It’s not just the patient you should consider

      Tomi Mitchell, MD | Conditions
    • Beyond the disease: the power of empathy in health care

      Nana Dadzie Ghansah, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today iMedicalApps
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Kids and concussions: The dilemma facing a doctor
1 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...