A recent research found that around one-third of former professional football players asked thought they had chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
Recurrent head trauma is associated with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain illness. Many former football players have had evidence of it discovered in their brains after they passed away.
Although CTE can only be formally identified by a postmortem brain study, the research, which was published on Monday in the journal JAMA Neurology, differs from many other studies on the disease in that it is based on survey data from former players who are still living.
The primary author of the new study and head of epidemiological research programs at Harvard University’s Football Players Health Study, Rachel Grashow, noted that the majority of studies on CTE that have been conducted are considerably smaller studies on deceased players. Thus, we have this extraordinarily wealthy bunch. It is varied in terms of playing duration, race, and region. Rather of studying a postmortem, we are actually examining how they lived.
The National Football League Players Association provides some funding for the Football Players Health Study, the cohort to which Grashow is alluding. About 4,000 men who competed in the American Football League and National Football League between 1960 and 2000 were polled for the study (the two amalgamated in 1970). Data on their replies was gathered between 2017 and 2020.
A subgroup of slightly less than 2,000 respondents who submitted further data is the subject of the current investigation. Of them, 34% claimed that, based on symptoms they had encountered—such as depression, cognitive impairments, and long-term consequences of prior head injuries—they thought they had CTE.
When asked for a remark, the NFL remained silent.
CTE is defined by the death of nerve cells in the brain, which can lead to cognitive impairment, problems controlling behavior, mood changes and depression, including an increased risk of suicidal ideation. Following brain trauma, symptoms may not appear for years or even decades. According to research, sustaining a second head injury before the first heals may raise the risk of chronic brain damage (CTE).
In the latest study, of the 681 respondents who felt they had CTE, 25% expressed suicidality, compared to 5% of respondents who did not think they had CTE.
One important result, according to Grashow, was that many of the symptoms and diseases that respondents with presumed CTE described might be treated, including sleep apnea and depression.
“The conversation completely changes from, ‘Do they or do they not have this incurable, unknown neurodegenerative disease?’ to, ‘What can be fixed now?’ once you start talking about treating these various conditions and getting them to visit the doctor and ask about them.” stated Grashow.
She also mentioned that in the past, therapies and management strategies have often not been discussed in relation to CTE.
“What would an autopsy of someone with controlled hypertension, depression, sleep apnea, and pain look like if they had chronic fatigue syndrome?” said she.
Treatment and management of CTE symptoms are a feasible option for those who fear they may have the disease, according to Dr. Thor Stein, head of molecular research at Boston University’s CTE program.
He stated, “There are many symptoms that are sometimes thought to be CTE, but they can still be treated.” Finding the people you can treat and starting treatment as soon as feasible are crucial. That doesn’t, in my opinion, negate the reality of CTE, which is still something we want to learn more about.
Stein stated that future study aims to identify biomarkers that can direct the diagnosis of CTE in live individuals.
However, he pointed out that because the current study relied on self-reported replies, it has limitations.
This was a single survey with a small set of questions, and in my opinion, there wasn’t much clinical follow-up to support it. Though I believe it’s a really crucial first step, that’s vital to do, Stein added.
Less than two weeks after Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion during a game against the Buffalo Bills, the new research was released in the first month of the NFL season. Tagovailoa had sustained three concussions throughout his five-year NFL tenure.
The event sparked new debate on the league’s accountability and role in reducing the danger of CTE among its players. The NFL agreed to pay $765 million to resolve hundreds of player complaints over brain injuries in 2013, and the organization recognized a connection between football and CTE in 2016.
The NFL has implemented new position-specific helmets in recent years, along with a guardian cap—an extra cushioned layer of protection—that is worn over the helmet during contact sessions.
This season, guardian hats are optional, and not many players have opted to wear them. An exception is tight end Kylen Granson of the Indianapolis Colts.
For me, the choice seemed obvious. I just replied in the affirmative. “Anything I can do to mitigate any sort of brain injury or long-term health effects that would be detrimental to me takes precedence,” he stated in a TikTok video. “I want to wear it for the entire season.”
