SPORTS - Technology to Prevent Brain Trauma

"Can a helmet sensor help prevent brain trauma in athletes?" PBS Newshour 3/17/2015

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  As we learn more about the effects of concussions and sports-related head trauma, parents, coaches and medical professionals are debating how to keep players safe.  Some are looking to technology, like a device worn under the helmet that shows the force of impact after a fall or collision.  Hari Sreenivasan reports as part of our Breakthroughs series.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  Next, the risk of concussions in sports and trying to lower those odds.

San Francisco 49ers linebacker Chris Borland shocked the pro football world yesterday by announcing his decision to retire from the game after a strong rookie season.  Borland, who is 24 years old and was expected to earn more than a half-million dollars next season, told ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” he was concerned about head trauma from repeated hits.

CHRIS BORLAND, Former NFL Player:  It was just kind of the realization.  I had just started my professional career.  And am I going to go down this road?  Am I going to commit the prime of my life to something that could ultimately be detrimental to my health?  And that just kind of triggered my thinking and changed the way I viewed the risks.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  Borland becomes the most prominent player to leave the game in his prime based on those risks.

But worries are also growing among many parents of younger athletes and kids playing sports.  It turns out researchers are looking into whether electronics can make sports safer.

Hari Sreenivasan reports on new innovations for brain safety on the playing field.  It’s part of our continuing series on Breakthroughs.

HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour):  Contact sports like hockey can be brutal; 19-year-old Oliver Bech-Hansen describes getting hit so hard, he lost his memory.

OLIVER BECH-HANSEN:  I just couldn’t remember everything.  It took me a couple weeks before I finally — I slowly started remembering things that happened.

HARI SREENIVASAN:  As the spotlight on concussions and head trauma intensifies, parents, coaches, and medical professionals are debating how to keep players safe, and some are looking to technology.

The Jersey Wildcats, a league of 16-to-20-year-olds, have been experimenting with a head impact device donated by Reebok.  The device, called Checklight, is worn under the helmet and features an LED light on the back of the neck that flashes if a player takes a big blow.