Brain injury summit starts in Richmond

Brain injury summit starts in Richmond

Posted: Jun 13, 2012 6:43 AM CDTUpdated: Jun 13, 2012 6:43 AM CDT

By Deon Guillory - email

Posted by Phil Newsome - email

 

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RICHMOND, VA (WWBT) -

Concussions from football account for more than half of concussions among high school sports.

That's from a study in the American Journal of Sports Medicine.

Those brain injuries are now the focus of a two day summit that starts Wednesday here in Richmond.

Health professionals from across the country will be here to examine the possible link between brain injury and young people in the juvenile justice system.

Brain injuries have been a hot topic in recent months. We've even done several stories looking at the effects of sports injuries and protection on the field.

The largest youth football organization in the world is re-writing its rule book to try to protect kids who play. Pop warner football has created a concussion awareness initiative. Most pop warner kids practice nine hours a week.

The new guidelines would mean that only a third of that time could be spent in contact with another player. There will be no head to head hits. Tackling must be initiated within a three foot zone. These new rules start this fall.

Doctors say children's brains are still developing. That makes them especially vulnerable to long term damage from concussions.

This summit is an attempt to diagnose core problems and treat them.

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