Earlier this week NBC Boston Investigators reported on the 24 high school football players who have died in recent years from brain injuries. Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released a new study related to the issue.
“Football is a collision sport; traumatic injuries are frequent, and can be fatal,” states the report.
The report says 28 players died, 24 in high school, and most of the deaths were a result of tackling during games. The positions with the most fatalities are running back and linebacker.
8 of the 28 deaths were blamed on head first/head down tackling.The other 20 deaths were associated with the danger of returning to play too soon following a concussion.
18% of the high school players had suffered a concussion within a month of returning to play and dying of a brain injury.
Researchers have repeatedly said it is the secondary hits that become deadly. One example from the report is of a 16-year-old injured while carrying the ball and being tackled. He collapsed on the sideline and died the next day. He was found to have suffered a concussion during practice two days before the game.
