When innovation arises from necessity - NFL Head Injuries

16 winners have been selected to receive grants of $300,000 to further assist their research into tools to diagnose and treat brain injuries. This is all a part of the Head Health program sponsored by GE, Under Armour and the NFL. The focus is not only prevention, but also treating and training.

Anyone who follows the NFL understands the need to aggressively identify and ultimately prevent head trauma from happening. With this challenge, the results will obviously be used for the players, but also shared with society as a whole.

Many of mans greatest inventions were born out of necessity to an issue at the time. This could be the foundation for the overall safety and prevention of head injuries as a whole. From military members to kids riding bikes, head trauma is ever prevalent and still a bit of a mystery.

Some of the more promising initiatives receiving funding are a blood test that could diagnose a head injury, imaging that could show small broken connections in the brain and portable imaging devices that could be used on a sideline.

Under Armour is a part of the initiative to find materials and innovations that can track injuries real time as well as prevent them on contact. 10 winners will receive $500,000 each to further their research.

With so many players current and past affected by the lingering effects from head trauma, it is nice to see so many involved to try and solve the problem.