NFL Donates $30 Million for Brain Injury Research

Surprisingly, among all institutions, the National Football League (NFL) awarded a huge amount of donation to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund brain injury research.

In its years of history, this was said to be the first time that the football league donated such a huge amount of money. The donation that amounted to $30 million is typically distributed in a grant system.

According to a statement released by the NIH, it is way too early to determine how the money will be distributed or whether it will benefit any of the numerous brain research centers in San Diego.

Incidentally, the UCSD Department of Radiology has previously received donation from NFL charities to fund brain injury researches on high school and college athletes. Consequently, if the department will receive another grant this time, it will help the team in pursuing its ongoing research.

Meanwhile, the Professor of Radiology in Residence, Dr. Ronald R. Lee, claimed in a statement that although football is a great game, professional experts like him need to protect players. Lee further said that that it is very important to learn more about brain injuries and to make accurate diagnosis such as when it is already safe for players to go back into the game.

Furthermore, the donation was also meant to benefit homecoming soldiers with head injuries. In fact, approximately 20 percent of the veterans coming back to San Diego, California from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars would benefit from the grant.

Researchers in San Diego admitted that there is a lot more research that needs to be accomplished on brain injuries. Therefore, the NFL’s generous donation will definitely make a big difference to this cause.

Also, Lee added in his statement that he and his co-researchers are quite aware that aside from brain injuries, football players could have many other injuries. However, Lee claimed that the brain is the most important organ of the body, which is why it is the most important concern of the researchers.

At present, about 3,400 former and current NFL players have already sued the league over brain injury claims or concussions.

Probably, the NFL’s overwhelming complaints over brain injury have majorly contributed to the league’s drive to donate such a huge amount of grant to brain injury research despite the rumors that it is currently struggling following the nation’s economic downfall. However, several personal injury lawyers are glad upon knowing that the league has finally made its great move to prevent further brain injuries among its players.

Sleepy Drivers and Drunk Drivers Have High Risks for Vehicle Accidents

In a study conducted by several safety advocates from France, it was revealed that being sleepy while driving is as risky as drunk driving. The study suggests that both sleepy drivers and drunk drivers are at least twice as possible to cause a vehicle accident.

The said study that was authored by Nicholas Moore at the Center of Hospitalo-Universitaire de Bordeaux analyzed data gathered from 679 drivers who were admitted to a hospital in southwestern France for more than a day because of a severe accident between 2007 and 2009.

Moore and his other co-author noted in a letter to the Archives of Internal Medicine that sleepiness poses almost as much risk as alcohol intake.

The researchers used information gathered from driver questionnaires and police reports to determine what factors may have contributed to the vehicle accidents. Under the questionnaires, drivers specified what medications they were going through, their alcohol intake and how sleepy they were before the accident, while hospital files gave information on patients’ blood alcohol levels.

Most of the injured drivers were at their golden age and majority of them were males. More than half of the injured was on a motorcycle while about a third was in a car and 10 percent was on a bicycle during the time of the accident.

Meanwhile, based on police reports, 355 of the drivers were found responsible for the accidents. The researchers concluded from the said reports that being baby boomers driving a car, drinking alcohol and being sleepy are all linked to an increased risk of causing a vehicle accident.

Furthermore, an associate scientist at the Henry Ford Hospital Sleep Disorders and Research Center in Detroit, Christopher Drake, also attested that a few hours of sleep loss will produce as much impairment as six bottles of beer. Therefore, Drake explained that if a person had a whole night of sleep loss, it equates to having a 0.19 blood alcohol content level. In US, the lawful blood alcohol level is 0.08 percent, and anything that goes beyond that limit is considered illegally impaired.

At present, there is no law that prohibits sleepy drivers from driving, or legislation to pull sleepy drivers on roadways. Nevertheless, several personal injury lawyers believe that in the long run, provisions covering sleepy drivers will be implemented due to the growing number of vehicle accidents involving sleepy drivers.

What To Expect In Roll Over Accidents

Rollover injury account for more serious injuries than simple fender benders, side swipes and other accidents except high speed head on collisions of course. With rollover accidents, the injuries range from serious to fatal. In rollover accident, aside from the usual hazards of metal to metal impact when two cars collide, the victim is faced with more dangers. One of them is collapsing car roofs. Another additional hazard is injuries caused by collapsing vehicle parts.

To give you an idea of how serious rollover accidents are, some injuries caused by this accident are head and neck injuries, brain injuries, spinal fractures, arm and leg fractures, concussions, soft tissue injuries, internal injuries, dislocations, cuts and scrapes.

If you figured in a rollover accident, the symptoms may not appear immediately. Some may take two to three days to surface. If, after the accident, you experienced pain, headache, blurred vision, dizziness, loss of taste, smell, or hearing, numbness or tingling, fatigue, blood in urine or stool, swelling, or loss of motion to the area/stiffness/tightness you definitely suffer more than minor injuries.

If you have been involved in a rollover accident, immediately go to your physician and seek assistance of a personal injury lawyers to protect your rights.