Concussions they have been in the headlines more than ever recently after several high profile incidents in the NFL.

Each year the Centers for Disease Control say there are nearly two million traumatic brain injuries, 75% are concussions.

The CDC also says 300,000 of those are sports related and its the second leading cause for brain injury in those 15 to 24 after car accidents.

In recent years the numbers of concussions in young people have doubled, and some doctors call it a growing epidemic.

Now a new program spear headed by the University of Kentucky is hoping to tackle concussion head on and help students as their brains heal.

Playing soccer since she was four, Tates Creek High School sophomore Katie Workman is no stranger to injuries.

"Up to this point the worst injury I've had was I broke my collarbone, ninth grade," said Workman.

This year her season was almost sidelined because of a concussion, not from a violent collision rather a simple repetitive drill.

" I was doing headers and I was just going along feeling really good, I was at 40, oh my gosh I'm at 40 headers I'm doing so good," said Workman.

Katie is among a growing number of high school athletes getting a concussion.

The Centers for Disease control say about 92,000 student athletes have concussions every year.

"Its been a lingering problem for a long time as far back as people have been playing sports, but it hasn't had the appropriate attention or the appropriate care," said Dr. Dan Han, the director of the UK Concussion Program.

A simple test Katie took before ever hitting the soccer field helped her doctors track her progress while her brain healed.

Through a partnership with the University of Kentucky, student athletes in the Fayette County School system are tested prior to the start of their season.

"We get a baseline on their neurology cognitive skills and then if they do sustain a concussion then we use the neurocognitive baseline as a tool to return the athlete to play, said Rob Ullery, with UK Sports Medicine.

The testing is simple and Fayette County isn't the only community making sure student athletes are examined before the season starts.

Chris Sharrock is a physical therapist at Kort in Winchester, he too is testing students from George Rogers Clark High School.

Sharrock says you can think of the testing sort of like an insurance policy for your brain.

Testing of cognitive brain function takes nothing more than a computer.

What looks like at first glance a game is really helping Dr. Sharrock measure an athletes brain function.

"What it does is test reaction time, memory, quick recall skills, it also takes about 30 minutes, so it really tests your ability to stay focused on a task," said Dr. Chris Sharrock.

Those are the things that doctors say after a concussion can weaken.

Tests like these helped Katie's doctors better understand her brain function before and after her concussion.

While getting back on the field was important to Katie, her doctors were concerned for the fragile state of her brain and what could happen later down the road if injured again.

The ultimate goal for these tests, preventing those reoccurring concussions, something that can be fatal.

"We know there are long term problems after a concussion so if we can safely return an athlete to play or in some cases disqualify an athlete from playing a sport that could possibly injure them for life that is something that can be very beneficial to a young athlete," said Dr. Sharrock.

The testing that you just saw is called Impact testing and is now used by all pro football and hockey teams.

The UK Multidisciplinary Concussion Program is one of the largest interdepartmental and multidisciplinary closed-head injury program in the region.

Kort Physical Therapy has contracts with school systems in Jessamine and Madison Counties.