A pediatrician is asked by her local school board to help them decide whether to discontinue their high school football program. She reviews the available evidence on the risks of football and finds it hopelessly contradictory. Some scholars claim that football is clearly more dangerous than other sports. Others suggest that the risks of football are comparable to other sports, such as lacrosse, ice hockey, or soccer. She finds very little data on the long-term sequelae of concussions. She sees claims that good coaching and a school culture that prioritizes the health of athletes over winning can reduce morbidity from sports injuries. In this paper, 3 experts also review the evidence about sports risks and discuss what is known and not known about the science and the ethics of high school football.
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January 2017
Special Article|
January 01 2017
Should School Boards Discontinue Support for High School Football?
Lewis H. Margolis, MD;
Lewis H. Margolis, MD
aDepartment of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina;
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Greg Canty, MD;
Greg Canty, MD
bDepartment of Pediatrics, Children’s Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, Missouri; and
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Mark Halstead, MD;
Mark Halstead, MD
cDepartment of Orthopedic Surgery, Washington University, St Louis, Missouri
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John D. Lantos, MD
bDepartment of Pediatrics, Children’s Mercy Kansas City, Kansas City, Missouri; and
Address correspondence to John D. Lantos, MD, Children’s Mercy Hospital, 2401 Gillham Rd, Kansas City, MO 64108. E-mail: jlantos@cmh.edu
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Address correspondence to John D. Lantos, MD, Children’s Mercy Hospital, 2401 Gillham Rd, Kansas City, MO 64108. E-mail: jlantos@cmh.edu
POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE: The authors have indicated they have no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose.
Pediatrics (2017) 139 (1): e20162604.
Article history
Accepted:
August 05 2016
Citation
Lewis H. Margolis, Greg Canty, Mark Halstead, John D. Lantos; Should School Boards Discontinue Support for High School Football?. Pediatrics January 2017; 139 (1): e20162604. 10.1542/peds.2016-2604
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