From high school to professional sports, it seems like we are hearing more and more about concussions these days. But what actually is a concussion? According to WebMD, a concussion is “any type of brain injury that is caused by a blow to the head or body, a fall, or another injury that jars or shakes the brain inside the skull.”1 Indeed, the reason we are hearing more about concussions from our favorite sports teams is because they are becoming more and more common. According to Saint Clare’s Concussion Center for Children and Adolescents, “From 1997 to 2007, ER visits for concussions doubled for ages 8-13 and tripled for ages 4-19”2. Furthermore, “Each year, an estimated 3.8 million concussions related to sports/recreation occur in the United States.” That’s a lot of brain injury! And with so many injuries, athletes are itching to get back into the game. Are there any potential treatments to decrease healing time?
Marijuana?
Yeah. Marijuana. According to a recent paper published in Current Pharmaceutical Design3, endocannabinoids, or molecules in our body similar to an ingredient in marijuana, may have neuroprotective effects. THC, marijuana’s pseudo-endocannabinoid, can bind to receptors in our nervous systems, stimulating many different outcomes.
Endocannabinoids have been shown to decrease over-stimulation of brain neurons. This is important because they can enhance neuron survival in a situation of traumatic brain injury. Furthermore, the endocannabinoid system seems to have an effect on neurogenesis, or the creation of new neurons. This could potentially shorten concussion-related healing time. Additionally, the endocannabinoid system seems to be neuroprotective through signal transduction systems. This means certain molecules are turned on and off inside the cell to promote neuron survival. Lastly, endocannabinoids may be neuroprotective through their effect on another brain cell, microglia. Microglia induce inflammation which, in some cases, can further damage neurons. By blocking microglial activation, endocannabinoids, or marijuana’s active ingredient THC, could protect the injured neurons.
Of course, this is just one side of the story. Understanding of medical marijuana and its involvement in the nervous system is still unclear. While it shows promise in some instances of nervous system impairment, it shows potential deleterious effects in others. However, these findings suggest that we may someday think of marijuana in a new light.
1. http://www.webmd.com/brain/tc/traumatic-brain-injury-concussion-overview.
2. www.saintclares.org/concussions
3. Galve-Roperh, I., Aguado, T., Palazuelos, J., Guzman, M. Mechanisms of control of neuron survival by the endocannabinoid system. Current Pharmaceutical Design 2008; 14: 1-10.
Athletes and Marijuana?
