NFL’s CTE crisis worse than feared, shocking new study finds
The NFL’s biggest health issue is much worse than doctors and researchers initially feared.
A study published on Tuesday by the British Medical Journal found that at least one in four NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021 had developed the brain disease known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.
The research focused on the commonality of CTE in NFL players and found that of the 878 former football players that appeared in at least one NFL game and died in that six-year span, at least 25 percent had the disease.
CTE is a disease that can only be diagnosed after death, meaning research on the subject depends on brains donated by players or their families.
Researcher Dr Daniel Daneshvar warns that the estimate of 25 percent is on the ‘low end’ and found that the maximum possible prevalence of CTE in NFL players came in at 97 percent.
However, he believes the real number is ‘somewhere in the middle’ of those two figures.
A study of the brains of NFL players found that one in four samples developed CTE
The disease, which is only diagnosed after death, stems from repeated hits to the head
The study aims to publish an estimate on the overall rate of CTE in all NFL players
‘This study is a sobering reminder that football carries real risks, and those risks can have lasting consequences for players and their families,’ the NFLPA said in a statement to ESPN.
‘It also reinforces one of the NFLPA’s core priorities: improving player safety and supporting players throughout their lives, both during and after their careers.
‘The findings should serve as a call to action across the entire football ecosystem. We all share a responsibility to advance research, improve access to care, develop better treatments, and support those affected by the long-term impacts of the game.’
In a statement from the NFL, the league said it ‘continuously strives to make the game of football safer, including by implementing strategies to reduce concussions and head impacts.
‘The NFL remains committed to ensuring that the NFL community has access to a robust — and expanding — set of resources to enhance their physical and mental well-being.’
The study also examined the link between CTE and dementia. It found that in patients with the most advanced stage of CTE, Stage IV, 90 percent of samples had been diagnosed with dementia.
Daneshvar says the biggest predictor of CTE is the cumulative force of repeated hits to the head. He says ways to reduce these is by preventing children from playing tackle football and by eliminating hits in practices.
The British Medical Journal hopes to release a study in the coming months that estimates the overall rate of CTE in all NFL players at their time of death.
