Concussed rugby players being put at risk, say experts

By Kate Kelland LONDON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Rugby players with brain damage are regularly being sent back onto the field of play because the sport's governing bodies are not taking concussion seriously enough, medical experts said on Thursday. Barry O'Driscoll, a former International Rugby Board medical advisor who spoke to Reuters on the sidelines of a Rugby Football Union (RFU) conference on concussion, said he was in no doubt that injured players were going back into a dangerous environment. What an earth is a person in that state going back onto the rugby field for?" O'Driscoll resigned from the IRB last year in protest at the board's attitude to concussion. Martin Raftery, chief medical officer for the IRB, defended its position, saying the recent introduction of the Pitchside Suspected Concussion Assessment (PSCA) showed a commitment to player welfare.



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