Be Proactive with Concussions
October 22, 2019
Henry Ford Health System
Most people have seen the headlines about concussions as a common sports injury, and it's natural that parents may be concerned for their young athlete.
A large misconception in sports is that previous concussions are to be blamed for ongoing headaches, blurred visions and memory loss, among other symptoms.
“It’s really important to think about concussions in concert with overall brain health,” says Jeffrey Kutcher, M.D., a sports neurologist who treats athletes at the Henry Ford Concussion and Sports Neurology Clinic. “Concussions can be concerning, but they shouldn’t be looked at in a vacuum. The best way to prevent brain injury begins before the injury occurs.”
One way to do that is to consult with your child’s doctor or a sports neurologist for an annual evaluation. A sports neurologist focuses on managing sports-related brain and nervous system injuries and conditions in athletes, such as concussions, post-concussion syndrome, peripheral nerve injuries, migraines, epilepsy, and more.
“Having an annual evaluation of your athlete’s brain function when they are healthy and uninjured can help diagnose and treat issues when they arise,” says Dr. Kutcher.
Results from the baseline test can be used as an important tool for comparison by a qualified healthcare professional later if an athlete has a suspected concussion.
Best Practices to Ensure Your Athlete Stays Safe
Dr. Kutcher shares these tips for parents to make sure you’re keeping your child’s brain health and safety – not just their athletic performance – at the forefront:
• Get a brain health baseline. A proper baseline test should include a personal and family neurological history, with a focus on any active issues. It is important to note any neurological conditions that may influence concussion recovery, such as ADHD, depression, anxiety, or migraine headaches.
• Teach your kid to listen to her or his body. With any sport, there is a calculated risk to play. Teaching kids to listen to and be honest about how their body is feeling is the best way to prevent and treat injuries.
• In the event of an injury, look for the signs. Within 24 hours after an injury, an athlete should be evaluated if they are experiencing:
· Headaches
· Fatigue
· Dizziness and nausea
· Changes in sleep habits
· Trouble with memory
· Confusion
· Irritability and anxiety
· Light sensitivity
• Brain injuries don’t just occur with a blow to the head. They can also occur from falls, car accidents, or even through whiplash. If your child is experiencing any symptoms, be sure to consult your physician.
• Brain health is more than just concussions. If your athlete is complaining of chronic headaches, migraines, dizziness, memory or mood issues, there may be an underlying issue.
“There is no magic number of concussions a brain can sustain. Each individual is different,” Dr. Kutcher explains. “The impact severity and recovery time can greatly affect an athlete’s brain. By getting a baseline before the injury, we can establish a goal to work towards in recovery.”
Want to learn more? Henry Ford Health System sports medicine experts are treating the whole athlete, in a whole new way. From nutrition to neurology, and from injury prevention to treatment of sports-related conditions, they can give your athlete a unique game plan.
Visit henryford.com/sports or call (313) 972-4216 for an appointment within 24 business hours.
Lee Takes Key Steps in Heart Safety with AED Purchase, CPR Training for All Athletes
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
December 30, 2025
WYOMING – Tom DeGennaro never felt the typical dizziness, lightheadedness or nausea associated with the attack before he simply fell over in his Wyoming Lee classroom seven years ago.
His students moved quickly to help him, but within minutes, DeGennaro, one day past his 53rd birthday, was dead.
"Literally dead on the floor," DeGennaro said. "Just nothing there."
DeGennaro suffered an aneurysm, a bleeding of the brain which caused a subarachnoid hemorrhage or ventricular fibrillation which led to cardiac arrest. Fortunately, paramedics swiftly arrived at the school and with the help of an automated external defibrillator (AED), shocked DeGennaro back to life. Six months later DeGennaro, a former football and track coach at four West Michigan high schools, awoke from a coma.
"I was talking to the kids, then I just flopped over and started convulsing," DeGennaro said of his only recollection of the event.
It was an incident which stuck with Wyoming Lee cross country and track coach Greg Popma, who had coached under DeGennaro at Lee for many years. The more Popma saw overweight and obviously out-of-shape spectators huffing and puffing to make it to different points of a three-mile cross country course, the more it bothered him that real tragedy at a meet was only a heartbeat away.
So Popma did something about it.
With the help of a grant from the American Heart Association, Popma organized the purchase of an AED to be kept at all Legends sporting events. Sure, all Wyoming Lee school buildings already had an AED, but Popma worried that in a medical emergency such as a heart attack, minutes counted. Popma wasn't completely sold on the idea that an AED could be rushed to a nearby cross country course, softball field or tennis court in time to fend off disaster. Now an AED is kept at the ready disposal of a Wyoming Lee trainer.
Popma admits the odds of ever needing an AED at a cross country meet or any other sporting event are low. But he isn't willing to just accept low odds.
Instead of letting a near-tragedy to his coaching partner and friend just slide into memory, Popma chose to act.
"It made me think a little that something like that could happen at any time," Popma said of DeGennaro's experience. "It's not only about the kids, but about parents and others who probably shouldn't be running or going from place to place at a cross country meet. We needed to have something there."
While MHSAA guidelines require all head coaches at member high schools and middle schools to be CPR certified (with that certification usually including AED training), Popma took the training a step farther. With the help of Wyoming Lee teacher Mike Donovan, all athletes from 15 Lee teams have been trained and certified in the usage of CPR.
Popma said he's seen AEDs at countless cross country and track meets over 25 years of coaching. Most are easily within reach at the organizational tent at meets. And while he's never witnessed a heart attack at an event, Popma knows of a father dying at a Legends baseball game, and he's also old enough to remember 28-year-old Detroit Lions receiver Chuck Hughes dying on the field at Tiger Stadium in 1971 due to a heart attack.
To do nothing and hope for the best is not a plan, Popma said.
"I hope people understand, what good is it if you don't have an AED?" he said. "Obviously you can't have 100 percent certainty if you don't make the attempt. The response has been positive. Coaches think it's a good idea. It's like, 'Oh, I never thought of that.'"
DeGennaro is recovered from his heart attack, but in the last seven years figures he's been shocked over 90 times by the implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) in his chest. DeGennaro is honored that his experience sparked safety improvements at Wyoming Lee.
"Love it," he said. "Even at professional events these things can happen. AEDs need to be at every place, every sporting event and not just for the kids. For the adults, too.
"Nothing is 100 percent. You bring band-aids to games and never get cut, right? There needs to be preparation for something like a heart attack. I have two goals in life now. Spreading the word of Christ and getting people to learn about CPR."
PHOTO Wyoming Lee cross country/track coach Greg Popma carries his school’s portable AED that is brought to school sporting events. (Photo by Steve Vedder.)