Problem is not “just” the concussion
ACT Head Impact Tracker.
Because you should know. Protect your assets.
#youshouldbeACTingonit
Frequent impacts, bumps, knocks and jolts on a head occur in multiple sports.
These impacts and forces acting on a head may cause and contribute to:
1. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
TBIs range from mild concussions to severe permanent brain damage, and can result in physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and behavioral symptoms, and outcome can range from complete recovery to permanent disability or death. Childhood Traumatic Brain Injuries indirectly affect on psycho-social development dysfunctionalities, learning difficulties, late-onset epilepsy, ADHD, asocial behavior, substance abuse, and mental disorders.
2. Degenerative brain diseases
(CTE, dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases), and neurodegenerative disorders (such as MS and ALS)
The connection of these diseases and disorders to cumulative effect of Traumatic Brain Injuries and so-called sub-concussive events has also been established in multiple researches.
3. Second Impact Syndrome (SIS)
Second impact syndrome is a condition in which an individual experiences a second brain injury before completely recovering from a previous one. Athletes who sustain a concussion and return to sport early are considered being at exceptionally high risk. The second event does not have to be high in magnitude, a small skale blow to the head, chest or back might be enough to cause the brain to move inside the skull and trigger the SIS, and lead to death or being severely disabled for life.
4. Impaired Performance is more rarely being discussed (rightly so), but clearly there are multiple critical elements to the performance, which may be severely compromised due to sub-concussive events or concussions, such as alertness, memory, focus, fast thinking, ability to solve problems, balance and coordination.
There is very little the modern medicine can do to brain injuries, brain diseases and disorders they may
contribute to.
Prevention is the key.
And it all starts with data.
That’s why we created ACT Head Impact Tracker.
Addressing the issue has been slow probably due to the difficulties in recognition of the hazarduous events, and hence not understanding the scope of the events
It is not widely known or understood that:
1. Problems are caused by movement of a head.
2. Impact is not needed. A blow or a jolt can be just as bad.
Which are also the very reasons why wearing helmets and mouthguards are not preventing brain injuries, nor sub-concussive events, nor the cumulative effect.
3. Symptoms may take up to 2 days to manifest.
The decision or diagnosis should not only be based on what can be observed right after the incident. The bigger the forces, the more violent the event and higher the risk of damage.
4. There are no pain receptors in brain tissue.
Athletes do not know when something is wrong.
5. Susceptibility to injury varies.
This will make setting safe and scientifically proven universal thresholds is going to be very challenging.
6. Cumulative effect usually become visible only later in career, or life.
The events occur, and the damage is done out there, today. But in the absence of acute injury, like sub-concussive events, cumulative effect and delayed symptoms, the action which should be taken today, is not.
Why electronically measuring and tracking the events is a must
1. We do not know what is happening on the pitches today
It is virtually impossible to know how many potentially harmful events there are, how violent they are, and when they occur.
2. We do not know who will be affected
For the athletes’ health, safety and legal protection, it is crucial to be able to recognize the incidents on the pitch/path/track/…
3. We do not know how they would be affected
Knowing the event history may help to trace possible causes or contributors and can help to manage the load on a head.
4. We do not know when they would be affected What magnitude is too high?
How many events is too many? How big of a cumulative load is too big? Who will be affected, how and when? We do not know these things today. And we never will know these things, unless the data is gathered and far more research is made. Cumulative effect of events from today may take tens of years to manifest, not one more day without knowing what is happening should go by – the data collection must start now.
ACT Head Impact Tracker is made for measuring and tracking the events on a head
ACT Head Impact Tracker measures and tracks events on a head by:
1. Initial and maximum linear acceleration/deceleration (g-force),
2. Impact g-load in all sensor types, and is added with
3. Initial and maximum angular velocity (rad/s), and
4. Accumulation of angular velocity in ACT Head Impact Tracker head sensor Pro.
Typically brain injury results from the combination of angular and linear forces. There is no clear consensus of a clear-cut danger limit as expressed in linear acceleration (g-force), or that of angular velocity (rad/s). However, in many studies acceleration/deceleration under 40g have been considered likely not to cause permanent damage, but it can be extrapolated that the probability of permanent damage starts to increase in impacts within the range of 40-60g and higher. Some research studies on adult male athletes have suggested that exceeding 70-100g or more, is associated with an increased risk of concussion.
WARNING! These thresholds are not universally agreed upon within the medical and scientific communities and can vary depending on multiple factors (such as age, gender, impact history, brain injury history, and many more). These thresholds should not be used as general guidance.
We believe that there is not sufficient medical research to reliably, simply and safely classify the individual events to “small-medium-hard” or “green-yellow-red” on the basis of g-force, angular velocity (rad/s) or any other such measurement. In the absence of proven, reliable, scientific results ACT Head Impact Tracker is not telling you “when the impact is too hard, or when it is not”, “when there is too many events, or when not”, “when the load is getting too high, or when it is not”, nor will ACT tell you “when you have to seek medical help, or when not”. There simply is no safe way for a measuring and tracking device for impacts and forces acting on a head to do so. More data and research is needed.
But as a thumb rule:
The higher magnitude the forces, the bigger the chance damage occurs.
The higher the number of events, the bigger the chance damage occurs.
The more frequent and closer in proximity the events are, the bigger the chance damage occurs
Warning
ACT Head Impact Tracker is not a medical device and it is not intended for diagnosis or treatment evaluation of traumatic brain injury. ACT Head Impact Tracker is not a protective device, it does not prevent incidents from happening and it does not protect against injuries or any kind. In case of a head impact, or when suspecting one or a concussion, immediately and safely leave the activity and seek help from licensed medical professional. It is advisable to have an accompanying person if concussion is possible.