Cheerleaders who Stunt May be at Risk for Serious Injuries

Cheerleaders who Stunt May be at Risk for Serioussurfaces that athletes can safely fall on and not be
Injuriesat risk for catastrophic injuries to the head after
 falling from heights that are typical of stunts.
As serious and catastrophic injuries continue to be 
reported in the media, attention is drawn to how toAccording to the research, athletes falling on to a
better train and prepare cheer coaches to respond.grass surface may sustain catastrophic head, neck,
 and back injuries from only falling from a height of 3.5
On August 18, 2010, a high school cheerleader, Kaciefeet. Unless cheerleaders stunt on protective mats,
Schlosser, sustained a compression fracture to hercoaches need to recognize that the risk for a serious
second lumbar vertebrae after losing her balance andinjury is high.
falling from a stunt in which she was balancing on a 
teammates' shoulders. The focus on this story is notBecause the risk for serious injuries is high for
the injury, but what transpired after she fell.cheerleaders who stunt, coaches need to have a
 heightened awareness of how to act in the event of
Superintendent, Paul Peterson, reported to the locala potentially serious or catastrophic injury.
newspaper that the coach had not followed standard 
first aid training. Emergency medical services wereHow to Provide Emergency Medical Care for a
not called and the coach moved the injured athlete.Serious Injury until Help Arrives
The cheerleader's parents expressed concern aboutWith the knowledge that any fall from a height has
how the injury was handled by the coach.the potential to cause a serious injury to the athlete,
 cheer coaches need to be diligent and act quickly in
Fortunately, this young athlete did not sustain anythe event that one of their athletes loses his/her
spinal cord damage by being moved. However, thisbalance and falls from any height.
situation could have turned out much different. 
Moving an athlete with a spinal vertebral fracture canSome of the signs and symptoms that an athlete
end in a spinal cord injury leaving the athlete either amay experience with a serious head, neck or back
quadriplegic or paraplegic.injury include the following:
  
This young cheerleader was very lucky. With weeksLoss of consciousness
of rehabilitation, she should be able to have a fullNumbness, tingling, radiating pain in extremities
recovery. However, her mother stated in the articlePain directly over spine
that although her daughter will be allowed to returnConfusion/Inability to answer simple questions
to cheer again, she will be required to keep her feetBlood/spinal fluid from ears, nose
on the ground.Difficulty breathing
 Inability to move extremities
Recognition that Cheerleaders who Stunt may be atMemory loss
a Risk for Serious Injury 
While there are many types of cheerleadingThe most important point for the first responder is
programs available across this country, the programsto not move the athlete if a head, neck or back
that choose to stunt need to recognize the high riskinjury is suspected. While waiting for emergency
that their athletes face for serious injuries. Cheermedical services to arrive, the injured athlete's head
coaches, school administrators, athletes and theirand neck need to be stabilized (not permitted to
parents need to understand the risk these kids takemove). The coach can perform this by placing his/her
when they are launched into the air.forearms on both sides of the injured athlete's head
 and neck and grasping the injured athlete's shoulders
The most important scientific information for those inwith his/her hands. This position stabilizes the head
the cheer industry to understand is "critical height".and neck through the first responders' forearms.
This is a term that has recently surfaced in research 
published in the Journal of Athletic Training.Because emergency medical help may not arrive for
 a few minutes, it is also important to keep the
The purpose of the research was to study theinjured athlete calm by quietly talking to him/her. The
critical height for surface materials ("an approximationgoal of the conversation is to keep the injured
of the fall height below which a life-threatening headathlete's mind off of the injury possibilities and on to
impact injury would not be expected to occur")anything else.
(Shields, B.J. & Smith, G.A., 2009). This study 
was undertaken because surfaces used byKnowing how to react in an emergency may mean
cheerleaders have not received much attention.the difference in the outcome of an injured athlete.
 When in doubt, stabilize the injured athlete, call for
 emergency medical services, and provide emotional
The results indicated that only two surfaces includingsupport to the athlete until help arrives.
the "landing mat on foam floor" and "spring floor" are