City College of New York: Nafissatou Yattassaye and Her Insights

Hi! My name is Nafissatou Yattassaye, a freshman at the City College Of New York. I'm an undergraduate, First-Generation student studying Communications and Journalism with a passion for storytelling, teamwork, and leadership. I am the founder of my school's sports series column and have published pieces in the sports business journal! Looking ahead, I’m eager to expand my experience in management, advertising, public relations, journalism, or broadcasting, whether in sports, news, or organizational settings!

Reviewed Article: Long-Term Cognitive and Neuropsychiatric Consequences of Repetitive Concussion and Head-Impact Exposure by McAllister and McCrea.

Main Argument & Findings:

The main argument of this article revolves around the topic of concussions in athletes and the impact either short or long term, on the individual's recovery. Over two years, the shift in the medical field involving scientists, doctors, sports programs, and athletes themselves changed the understanding of what a concussion is and its severity. Although minimum standards of when it is deemed appropriate to return back to play were passed in 50 states, there are still three main questions being proposed: how many[concussions] are too many? How does one incident lead to multiple exposures to concussions even when not diagnosed?, and what happens in the long run and when do we truly know it’s safe to return back to play?

Through research done by epidemiological study, recurrent concussions aren’t that common to happen after having one concussion. However, recurrent concussions when they do happen, tend to have a longer recovery time, and a delayed return back to play for student-athletes. There was a study done on highschool, and college football players tracking the amount of hits they take to the head in a season. The amount of hits each took averaged from numbers from 500- 2,000 in one single season showing a concern about long term cognitive effects in athletes that need to be tracked and monitored. Although these impacts aren’t causing risks first hand, athletes may be suffering the neurological stress without realizing it leading to concussions.

Short term effects of a concussion are identified and known but, the long term effects of recurrent concussions still need to be rewritten. Although the issues of delayed recovery, and CTE are present, there is a need for more studies to truly add to the claims of long-term effects from this injury and come up with a way to protect athletes down the line.

Importance for Youth:

I believe that this information is important to the youth because whether you are an athlete or a person that tends to have little to no impact on the head ( falls, accidents, etc), you should be aware of what a concussion is and its effects. The article Why Your Baby or Toddler Is Banging Their Head, written by Sarah Bradley, states that on average, especially babies and infants, hit their head 20% of the time. Early exposure and trauma to the head is something we all may have dealt with at any given time. So, by building awareness using sports puts that into perspective throughout my chosen article. It also puts into perspective that as we learn more about concussions and long term effects, there would be more resources to help and protect athletes down the line.

What I Learned: 

As a student-athlete myself that has suffered from two concussions, I believe putting out awareness on this topic is truly important. Recovery takes time and everyone’s journey to healing from a concussion is so different. The eagerness to do more studies on the long term effects to help athletes and the youth in general down the line will provide more helpful insights. And, will help me out as well!

Citations: McAllister, T., & McCrea, M. (2017). Long-Term Cognitive and Neuropsychiatric Consequences of Repetitive Concussion and Head-Impact Exposure. Journal of athletic training, 52(3), 309–317. https://doi.org/10.4085/1062-6050-52.1.14

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/nafissatouyattassaye