By STEPHANIE BEECKEN
6 News Reporter
MARYVILLE (WATE) - Concussions are being reported more than ever and doctors and coaches are coming up with new ways to protect the players.
Nathan Miranda got in one last practice in Thursday before heading to California to play college ball. He spent the last four years playing middle linebacker for Maryville High School. With all the tackles, he eventually took a hard hit to the head.
"I went to make the tackle and I got a knee to the helmet and it went black for a second, and I got up and I wasn't really sure where I was at, kind of dizzy," Miranda said.
Maryville High head football coach George Quarles was Miranda's coach. He says concussions are taken very seriously. "We've had them have to miss two games so we've had about every situation you can have as far as concussions go."
Coach Quarles now requires his players to take an online impact test. It measures the player's reaction time and short term memory.
If a player shows signs of a head injury, he may not practice until the impact test results return to normal and symptoms are gone for two weeks.
Dr. Tom Terrell, with UT Medical Center, says new technology is helping medical professionals diagnose concussions. "It's a more sophisticated form of MRI that's picked up micro hemorrhages," he explained.
If someone has a concussion they must increase activity slowly, only after symptoms are gone. Returning to normal activity too quickly could make the brain injury much worse.
"If an individual sustains another blow to the head before they are recovered, they can develop a life-threatening brain herniation," Dr. Terrell explained.
Nathan Miranda is well aware of the dangers, but says the reward of playing the game outweigh the risks.
"You know it can have some bad effects later in life, but if you choose to play you have to forget about it and just play," Miranda said.
Dr. Terrell is also doing research on players' genes. He's studying to see if a person's genetics makes him or her more prone to getting a concussion.
The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) has a concussion policy. It says any player who exhibits signs of a concussion shall be immediately removed from the game and shall not return to play until cleared by a health care professional.
TSSAA says some of the symptoms of a concussion are headache, dizziness and confusion and balance problems.
If a player shows signs of a head injury, he may not practice until the impact test results return to normal.
"I went to make the tackle and I got a knee to the helmet and it went black for a second, and I got up and I wasn't really sure where I was at, kind of dizzy," Nathan Miranda said.
