This is not generally available yet, but engineers at Georgia Tech may have developed a simple way to diagnose concussion. If tests are as conclusive as expected, we may soon be seeing these devices on football fields and many other athletic events.
The test goes like this: The person who received a head injury walks 20 feet away from a radar system (while reciting the months of the year backwards), then turns around and walks back. According to an article on Wired.com:
But why radar over other cognitive testing? The 10.5-gigahertz radar (similar to what might be used by a police officer or baseball scout) can measure certain properties relating to a person’s walking gait, like how their arms are swinging, how fast their legs move and the way their head bobs. Compare that to a database of previously recorded info related to normal walking motions, and you’ve got a quick and reliable measure of whether it’s neurologically safe for someone to go back in the game.
With the hits the NFL has been taking recently regarding its policy and response to players’ concussions, this system could be just the thing to save football’s reputation.
To read the full article, click here: Wired.com
