Every since Buffalo Bills tight end Kevin Everett dropped motionless to the turf in Week One of the NFL season, football coaches and players at all levels are probably paying more attention to sports-related head and neck injuries.

Since the largest number of head and neck injuries occur in football, and since football is played almost exclusively by boys and young men, there is a natural tendency to think this is mainly a male issue.

It’s not.

A recent article in the Journal of Athletic Training has put forth some shocking statistics: in high school soccer, girls suffered 68 percent more concussions than boys. Meanwhile, in basketball, girls were three times as likely to receive a concussive injury than boys.

And while, yes, football still produces the most concussions, the injury rate for girls in soccer isn’t that far behind.

According to the Journal, football results in 47 concussion injuries per 100,000 player games or practices. However, girls’ soccer was second highest, producing 36 such injuries per 100,000, followed by boys’ soccer at 22 and girls’ basketball at 21.

What’s more, according to an article in Tuesday’s New York Times, coaches, trainers and even physicians are not as likely to identify and appropriately treat concussions in women.

It seems likely then that the concussion rates for girls may be even higher than reported. As a result, girls may go back into games or return to play when they should not, setting them up for even more serious injury.

In case you are thinking that soccer injuries often result from “heading” the ball, that’s not the primary culprit. As in football, collisions with other players and with the ground result in nearly all soccer concussions.

Nobody really knows why girls seem more susceptible to concussions, although some theorize that their neck muscles are not as well-developed as boys.

In the past, football coaches often sent players back into games before they were ready. However, by now, most football coaches have been trained to identify concussive injuries.

All of which means the burden for identifying concussions, and making sure girls get the proper follow-up treatment, rests with coaches, trainers and even parents.

In some cases, especially for girls who have received more than one concussion, difficult and painful choices must be made to avoid long-term damage. In some cases, that may mean girls missing not only games, but also sitting out the season or giving up the sport entirely.

Today, girls are just as likely as boys to identify themselves socially as athletes first and students second. As a result, girls worry that quitting a sport not only means not doing something they love to do, but also losing their identity and social circle.

The pressure to allow children to play even after concussions can be intense. As a result, parents need to know the facts: girls can and do suffer concussions, and that multiple concussions can have serious long-term impact on brain function.

Any serious blow to the head that produces a headache, blurred vision or disorientation is worth a trip to the doctor or even the emergency room.