Head impacts, concussions may speed up brain's natural aging process

Researchers in America have studied subtle changes in students who have suffered a concussion. Although the research subjects appeared unaffected, comparison with subjects who had not experienced a concussion revealed “changes in gait, balance and in the brain's electrical activity, specifically attention and impulse control”. Brain scans also showed the non-concussed group had significantly greater electrical activity. They described the ‘slow traffic’ in the brains of concussed as a kind of accelerated ageing but advised readers not to be anxious about this as many other factors may be at work in the patterns they have seen.  

Want to find out more? Go to the source at News Medical.

Brain Injury Awareness Week 2012 in South Australia

 2012 Brain Injury Awareness Week (BIAW): The national theme for this year’s week (6 to 10 August) is ‘mild concussion’. Brain Injury Network of SA (BINSA) is using the theme, ‘I bumped my head’ and has a number of events running during BIAW.

For more information, download the Calendar of Events.

 Also, photos from the 20 July photo shoot on the BIAW topic, “bangonabeanie” are now available to view.

Brain Injury Awareness Week 2012 - Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:               6 AUGUST 2012
 
THIS WEEKEND THOUSANDS OF AUSTRALIANS 
WILL GET CONCUSSED PLAYING SPORT. 
AND IT WILL GO UNTREATED, UNDIAGNOSED, 
UNREPORTED AND UNRECOGNISED.
 
BRAIN INJURY AWARENESS WEEK BEGINS MONDAY 13 AUGUST 
 
Every  year  in  Australia  more  than  3,000  people  are  hospitalised  after  being
concussed playing sport. Triple that number won’t seek medical attention. And
as  many  as  ten  times  that  number  won’t  even  report  their  concussion  to
teammates, coaches or family because they may fear being removed from play. Or
they don’t even know they’re concussed. Nine out of ten people hospitalised with
concussion  don’t  recognise  the  injury.  Returning  to  sport  before  the  brain  has
recovered puts the player at risk of long-term brain damage.
 
Jeremy Wilcox knows this risk all too well. He was concussed 15 times playing
competition Rugby Union in the Australian Capital Territory, 9 times in just the
last three years of his career. And those are just the ones he can remember. “I was
often completely oblivious to being concussed. I just kept on playing. And the more I
got concussed, the more normal it felt,” says Wilcox. “I probably ended up in hospital
about  3  or  4  times”.  These  days,  Jeremy’s  short-term  memory  isn’t  what  it
should be for a man in his early forties. He has also lost his sense of taste and
smell.  He’s  the  Secretary  Manager  of  the  Australian  Capital  Territory’s  Rugby
Union Club (and while he still loves to cook, he gets his staff to taste the food). 
 
“We just don’t take concussion seriously enough in this country,” says Sports
Medicine  Australia’s  Dr.  Rob  Reid,  Australia’s  leading  concussion  educator.
“As  a  result,  ignorance  is widespread.  I  reckon  that most  people  still  believe
you’ve got  to  pass out to be concussed,  or that wearing  padded  headgear  is
going  to  prevent  a  concussion.  We  urgently  need  a  national  concussion
education  program  for  everyone  involved  in  sports  –  from  administrators  to
coaches, from players to parents. That’s why this Week is just so important.” 
 
For this year’s Brain Injury Awareness Week, Brain Injury Australia wants everyone
involved  in  sport  to  know  the  “Five  Rs”  of  concussion  -  Recognise  the  injury,
Remove yourself from play, Referral to a doctor, Rest and then Return to play.
  
For more information, or to arrange interviews with 
Dr. Rob Reid, Jeremy Wilcox or Nick Rushworth, Executive
Officer, Brain Injury Australia, contact Nick on (0417) 373 622 
 

Brain Injury Australia consultation on NDIS/NIIS

Brain Injury Australia in collaboration with the Brain Injury Association of NSW will facilitate a number of consultations in NSW during August 2012. These consultations will be targeted and focused on the Assessment and Eligibility for the National Disability Insurance Scheme/National Injury Insurance Scheme.  You are invited to participate in this consultation, and background documents can be downloaded for your information.

For more information on dates, locations,  etc,  visit  the Brain Injury Association of New South Wales website.