Canadian researchers say that sports such as football or Canada's favorite hockey can forever change the structure and function of the human brain, according to an online edition for girls and women from 14 to 35 years old Pannochka. net New evidence of the danger of contact sport published by Frontiers of Neurology.

"Concerns about the impact of collisions and falls in sport are growing. However, most of the research today is focused on former professional athletes who have already completed their sports career and for dozens of years have been hit on the head. Much less is known about the negative consequences of such strikes for young athletes, "say the authors.

The new project was led by Dr. Nathan Churchill, a neurologist, researcher at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. Dr. Churchill's group conducted a comparative study of the brain of young women and men participating in risky sports or engaged in a more peaceful and safe sport.

The project participants did not report any serious health problems. This indicates that the destructive effects of collisions and attacks on the head do not usually lead to an instant disruption of daily life, being up to a certain point compensated organism.

One reputable expert in the field of emergency medicine, Dr. Robert Glatter of the Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, fully agrees with this assumption.

Dr. Churchill's colleague noted that the brain of young people possesses enormous adaptive capabilities, is capable of restoring itself and adapting itself to unfavorable working conditions. The structural changes observed in the study participants were insignificant and easily compensated.

The project involved 65 young athletes - students of the local university. Scanning of the brain was performed before the start of the game season, to exclude fresh injuries. No one reported serious complaints and / or diseases of the nervous system and other health problems.

Among them, 23 participants engaged in contact sports, involving constant collisions with other players and falling. Another 22 participated in contests, where contact is allowed, but is not an indispensable attribute of the sport (basketball, football). The remaining 20 participants were engaged in volleyball and other sports that do not require contact.

The delayed consequences of repeated strokes on the head.

"The study clearly demonstrated that the first two groups had significant differences in the structure and functions of the brain compared with representatives of contactless sports. Serious biochemical changes were identified that are associated with concussion and brain injury, "commented Dr. Churchill.

These differences included a violation of the structure of the white matter - nerve fibers, playing the role of "wiring" inside the brain and ensuring the communication of its various parts. In representatives of hard contact sports, signs of a deterioration in the interaction between distant regions of the brain and a violation of the conduction of nerve signals.

Moreover, constant strokes on the head led to disruption of the brain zones responsible for processing visual information and motor functions. All this suggests that the negative consequences of recurrent traumas accumulate at the dawn of a sports career.

"The brain of young people becomes the first victim of contact sport. This is extremely important for understanding the delayed consequences of repeated attacks on the head. With unobtrusive changes, the chain begins to develop, leading to serious problems in the future, "says Churchill.

The risk of chronic traumatic brain encephalopathy.

Although overseas physicians, in general, met the results of colleagues approvingly, some points of the study were criticized. According to Dr. Glutter of Lenox Hill Hospital, the authors do not take into account the other side effects of the sport, which are difficult to quantify.

"Previous brain concussions and head injuries can affect the psyche of athletes - the authors could not control this moment. Although the abnormal results of brain MRI and biochemical changes deserve attention, they do not correlate with the clinical picture and are of little use for practical medicine, "added Dr. Glatter.

medbe. en.

Keywords:.