A new Boston University study has confirmed that almost all people who play American Football are suffering from long term neural damage.
The study suggests that 110 of 111 former NFL players’ brains that were donated to the study, returned symptoms of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).
That’s more than 99% of players (see graph below).
Generally found in individuals that have suffered repeated head trauma, CTE can cause a number of cognitive and behavioural issues, however the diagnosis of CTE can currently only be identified in a post-mortem autopsy.
The study at large was conducted on 202 former football players of all levels, including high school and college, with 87% of them returning positive CTE results.
Despite early misinterpretations of the disease, CTE is not the same as concussion, despite sharing similar symptoms. CTE is an extremely long term disease that has been correlated to the development of other neural diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Lead author of the 2017 Boston University study Ann McKee, revealed that many of the family members of players involved in the study expected to see evidence of CTE.
“Families don’t donate brains of their loved ones unless they are concerned about the person,” Ms McKee said “So all the players, on some level, were symptomatic,” she said.
In 2012, approximately four thousand former NFL players joined civil law suits against the League, seeking damages over the leagues failure to protect players from concussions, which resulted in a $765 million dollar settlement.
With so much work being conducted in the United States and yielding such damning evidence, the question needs to be raised as to why similar investments aren’t being made in Australian sports.
The Australian Football League (AFL) has spent many years adapting its concussion protocols to the latest scientific information, yet scarcely (if ever) mentions Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy and its potential to effect players post retirement.
A plethora of 21st century footballers have retired pre-emptively due to the effects of concussion, yet the AFL has not publically put CTE on the agenda – a sport which Dr Omalu likens to ‘gladiatorial sports in Ancient Rome’.
