Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz suffered a serious head injury during Game 1 of the second-round playoff series against the Florida Panthers. After taking an elbow to the head from Sam Bennett, Stolarz vomited on the bench and was rushed to the hospital. While he’s since been released and rejoined the team at practice, his neurological status remains uncertain.
What happened to Stolarz goes far beyond a “bump to the head.” This post explores the science of concussions, how the structure of water in the brain changes after trauma, and how osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) might help support recovery.
What Happens During a Concussion?
A concussion is a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). It occurs when the brain is jolted inside the skull, causing cellular and chemical disruption. Here’s what happens physiologically:
- Axonal shearing: The brain’s white matter stretches, damaging nerve fibers.
- Glutamate surge: Excess neurotransmitter release leads to excitotoxicity.
- Ion imbalance: Potassium and calcium are disrupted, increasing metabolic stress.
- Reduced blood flow: Despite needing more energy, the brain receives less oxygen.
- Neuroinflammation: Immune cells like microglia activate and may cause lingering inflammation.
Stolarz’s vomiting post-impact suggests brainstem irritation or increased intracranial pressure—serious signs that warrant close monitoring.
Brain Trauma and Water: The Invisible Injury
While not widely emphasized in conventional concussion management, emerging research suggests that brain trauma may do more than damage cells—it may fundamentally disrupt the structural organization of water within tissues. Although the role of water in traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains an underexplored frontier, the concept of water existing in distinct states—such as bound vs. unbound, or as coherent domains—opens a compelling perspective. These water structures appear to influence cellular signaling, metabolic efficiency, and even inflammatory cascades. When applied to the context of neuroinflammation and TBI, this framework invites a broader understanding of how the brain’s internal environment responds to trauma—and how restoring fluid integrity could become a novel axis for supporting recovery.
Coherent Water Domains
Physicist Roberto Germano describes coherent domains (CDs)—quantum-organized regions in water that:
- Support cellular communication.
- Store and transfer biological energy.
- Are easily disrupted by trauma.
When CDs are damaged, neural signaling becomes inefficient, fluid movement stalls, and healing slows.
Bound Water Disruption
As G. Kerch’s research explains:
- Healthy tissue contains a mix of tightly bound and loosely bound water.
- Injury can shift this balance, increasing tissue stiffness and impairing waste clearance and nutrient delivery.
These subtle fluidic imbalances often go undetected but can heavily influence post-concussion symptoms.
How Osteopathic Manipulation Supports Recovery
Osteopathy is uniquely equipped to address the physiological, structural, and fluidic aspects of concussion recovery. Here’s a few examples of some of the ways Osteopathy can help. Also you can check one of my previous posts on post concussion treatment with OMT here.
Cranial Osteopathy
- Targets the cranial membranes and dural tension.
- Helps normalize cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics.
- Supports restoration of the body’s primary respiratory mechanism—a subtle, rhythmic motion linked to whole-body health.
- Potentially helping to ease the axonal shearing within the brains structure.
Myofascial Release
- Releases restrictions in cranial and cervical fascia caused by trauma.
- May help restore water coherence and reduce mechanical stress on nerves.
- Allowing proper drainage of fluid through the jugular veins running in cervical fascia, as well as oxygenation of the head through the same fascia by way of the internal Carotid artery.
Lymphatic Drainage Techniques
- Promote clearance of metabolic waste and inflammatory byproducts.
- Specifically, related to the glutamate excitotoxicity it could help with the clearance of neurotransmitters.
- Encourage immune system balance and vascular normalization.
Strain-Counterstrain
- Supports normalization of neurovascular and fascial tension in the head and neck.
- Uses precise positioning to deactivate tender points in the fascia and muscle.
- Helps the nervous system “reset” protective reflexes after trauma.
Water, Fascia, and Healing
In osteopathy, the body is more than anatomy—it’s a dynamic interplay of structure, fluid, and energy. Research into biological water structures and fascia is validating what osteopathic physicians have long observed: trauma creates subtle restrictions that manual treatment can help resolve.
For athletes like Stolarz, OMT may not replace emergency care—but it can offer a deeper, tissue-level recovery process that integrates:
- Neurological balance
- Fluid homeostasis
- Tissue hydration and flexibility
Final Thoughts
Anthony Stolarz’s injury isn’t just a story of athletic grit—it’s a window into the complex science of concussion and the untapped power of the body’s natural healing capacity. Osteopathic treatment, by respecting the body’s structure and fluids, may play a vital role in recovery—especially in elite athletes under high performance demands.
Crux Osteopathy 