Doctors have new tool in concussion recovery

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Playing high school sports isn't all fun and games; it does come with some risks.

With more than 1.5 million student athletes hitting the football field this fall, a number of them will suffer a concussion.

Aron Russell, a Scottsdale high school football player, gives us a play-by-play of his experience.

"It was the first time I got a concussion and I really didn't know how serious it could be," he said. "How long I would be out."

The 15-year-old plays junior varsity football at Desert Mountain High School in Scottsdale. In September he suffered a concussion during practice.

"We were doing one-on-one hitting drills," Aron said. "I was standing up and a kid clocked me in the chin and I got knocked out for about 5 seconds."

A concussion is an injury to the brain. It's usually caused by a blow to the head. Symptoms include headaches, confusion, memory loss and ringing in the ears.

"I was having trouble concentrating," Aron said. "I pretty much had no short-term memory. The day of, I couldn't put sentences together. I was completely out of it."

Aron was out of school for a couple of days before being referred to Dr. David Carfagno at the Scottsdale Sports Medicine Institute.

"I thought it was something easy," Aron said. "That you could be out for just a week and then back with just a little trouble with memory."

Well, that wouldn't be the case. Aron was sidelined for about a month.

So when is it safe to let an athlete return to the field?

"It's not to take the place of any of the criteria or doctor or trainers or exams, but it's assessing," Carfagno said.

See how a computer is helping doctors make sure athletes are up to full speed, before heading out to the sports field again.