South Florida Injury Attorney Blog

The Associated Press reports that sixteen professional athletes, including Florida Panthers hockey player Noah Welch, have agreed to donate their brains after they die for research into concussions. The donations will help medical researchers at Boston's Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy better understand the effects of the repeat concussions that many professional athletes sustain in the course of their work. The project is a joint venture between the Boston University School of Medicine and the Sports Legacy Institute. The SLI was founded by Chris Nowinski, a former college football player and wrestler who became a neurologist.

This is great news, and long overdue. As a Florida brain injury lawyer, I've worked with many victims of traumatic brain injuries -- injuries to the brain caused by a blow or pierce wound to the head. These are serious, disabling injuries that always impair the victim's ability at least slightly and cannot be cured. After falls and traffic accidents, sports injuries are the most common cause of civilian traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). Worse, because athletes are often under pressure to perform and to be tough, they are frequently discouraged from leaving the field after a mild concussion. Not only does this deny them access to medical care, it also raises their chances of death or serious brain damage after another TBI.

The donors include six former NFL players, which raises another issue: Some former players' allegations that the NFL unfairly denies disability benefits to former players who sustained multiple concussions on the field. (None of the NFL alums involved Nowinski's project are making those allegations, at least in this article.) Some former NFL players have developed memory loss, depression and other symptoms consistent with multiple concussions.

Part of the problem is that brain injuries are still not fully understood; the effects of a minor concussion can actually go unnoticed for days or weeks, even when medical tests show clear signs of injury. Players and coaches need more information to make the best decisions possible after an injury, which is why studies like these are so important. I applaud the selfless decisions of these athletes to donate their brains to science, and I hope this and similar projects are able to help prevent devastating traumatic brain injuries for other athletes.

If you or someone you love has suffered a brain injury through sports, a car wreck or another serious accident, contact Cohn, Smith & Cohn today to discuss your rights and your legal options.