As we have commented in the previous blog, injury more worrying during sports practice (ski – ski, snowboard, rugby, boxing, motorcycling…) is the one that is produced by a head trauma, whether against the ground, against an object or against a rival.
Fortunately, in most cases it is just a scare, but there are other times when this blow can cause a brain injury and we are not able to detect it. In this case we are talking about a concussion, that is, a traumatic injury to the brain resulting in an alteration of its function.
It symptoms They are varied, the most common being headache, dizziness, memory disorders or the balance problems.
ONLY 101% OF CONCUSSIONS RESULT IN A LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS, SO IT IS NOT NECESSARY FOR IT TO EXIST FOR THE INJURY TO HAVE OCCURRED.
Symptoms may appear at any time, but most commonly they occur within 24-48 hours after the blow.
From Evolution Madrid We present you a small protocol to be executed after a drop and/or a strong blow to the head, which can be used when a person suffers an accident skiing, a road accident or a blow in sport:
If the subject is conscious:
– We will not remove the helmet if you are wearing it (in case there is a cervical injury) nor will we try to lift it.
– With the subject on the ground we will ask several questions: What is your name?, Where are we?, What day is your birthday?, Who did you come with on the trip?, What hotel did we stay at?The author
Hey, how’s the score going?
– As visual clues, we will notice if the patient is dazed, confused, more irritated than normal, uncoordinated.
– We will ask you if you have a headache, if you feel dizzy, if you feel like vomiting, if your vision is clear or blurry, if you are drowsy or feel “foggy,” if you have trouble concentrating, if you have pressure in your head or sensitivity to light or noise.
Any response or clue beyond the “normal” will make us suspect that you have suffered a shock and so we will wait until things get back to normal and when they do we will help them to sit down. Once they are seated we will wait again until they feel better and if necessary we will ask for help to get them up and finish the activity.
If the subject is unconscious:
– Again from the ground and without removing the helmet we will try to activate the subject by means of verbal and physical stimuli (scream, pinch, hit). If he does not respond, then we will proceed to remove the helmet (we must prioritize life over any other injury). We will open the subject's mouth and check if he is breathing.
- If breathing: We will call the health services of the place where we are, commenting on the events and placing him in a safe position, we will not touch him any more.
- If not breathing: The subject will have entered cardiorespiratory arrest and therefore we will call the health services again to explain the situation and then we will begin a cardiorespiratory massage using 30 compressions thoracic at the level of the sternum and 2 breaths in adults (15 compressions and 2 breaths in children). We will continue with the resuscitation until the arrival of the medical services. In case someone could provide us with a defibrillator We will request it and as soon as we turn it on, it will indicate the steps to follow to apply it to the subject.
Finally, if you are a active person and you do sports like the ski, snowboard, contact sports or in any other way you have received a blow to the head, from Evolution Madrid We recommend going to a specialist doctor to rule out possible injuries.
In order to resume sports activities, a protocol of "return to play", which will tell us if the player is prepared to make physical and mental effort.
