Originally Posted by
closetbiker
Sorry, just another note.
I find it quite odd that from someone who received a concussion while wearing his helmet, claimed the helmet prevented brain injury and suggested I need to study a bit more, it seems the entry you've suggested confirms what I've posted.
Closetbiker, you seem to think that a helmet has not worked if it lessens the injury potential in a crash situation, but the person still goes away with a concussion. A concussion is much better than a contusion. A contusion can be life-threatening, as can a subdural hemotoma and a skull fracture. If the helmet prevented the worse injury, has it failed by your standard if a person does have a concussion?
For the record, I had a concussion, was semi-conscious with memory loss for about 45 minutes, and had virtigo for the weekend which lessened over the next months. The CT scan came back negative for intra-cranial bleeding, contusion, subdural hematoma, etc. I was able to get back to cycling about two months after the accident, and commuting about three months post-accident. There is no residual damage to my brain, and the fact that I am currently in a MSPH program and have made some "A" grades shows that the neural functions are still there. The trauma doctor told me that it would have been much worse without the helmet. I do have a residual lump on my right hip, and had loss of sensation there for years afterward; the hemotoma on my hip had to be drained every week for over a month, and the hip was the second body part to impact the ground (my head was the first). This is direct evidence that if I had not been wearing a helmet an extremely hazardous brain injury would have been highly probable.
John