In a statement released by Dr. Robert Stern of Boston University School of Medicine, he claimed that the disease starts with a whole bunch of hits. However, in sets in motion, the condition becomes worse and worse as someone gets older.
Dr. Stern is involved in the four-year study of 85 brains of deceased athletes who had a history of repeated mild traumatic brain injuries. Consequently, he revealed that 68 of those brains had CTE.
It could be remembered that in a recent blog post of a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer earlier this year, he featured news about the two former NFL players who wished to donate their brain to science before they committed suicide.
As previously reported, former Chicago Bears’ player Dave Duerson apparently left a suicide note saying that he wishes his brain to be donated at the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy in Boston University’s School of Medicine.
Nearly a couple of months following Duerson’s death, another former NFL player committed suicide. The former San Diego Chargers player, Junior Seau, reportedly claimed his own life through a self-inflicted shot. Consequently, his family assumed that the decedent likewise wanted to donate his brain into brain injury study since he chose to shot himself in his chest instead of his brain, which is typically the most preferred spot of many who commit suicide.
Meanwhile, no specific details were released regarding the owners of those brains found to have CTE.
Moreover, going back with the recent findings of the study, Dr. Stern said that the disease involves the progressive deterioration of brain cells and usually leads to death of brain tissues.
Meanwhile, in a statement released by Dr. Peter Warinner, Director of Sports Neurology at Brigham and Women’s and Newton Wellesley Hospital, he reminded that although the recent study is informative, it is nevertheless inconclusive.
Dr. Warinner further explained that there could also be causative factors and not just concussion or head trauma. Such causative factors may lead them to get the disease whether they had or never had head trauma, he added.
On the other hand, Dr. Stern likewise agreed with Dr. Warinner’s theory. He noted that doctors and scientists should not interpret the recent findings to mean that anyone with a history of hitting his or her head could have the disease. Nevertheless, he confirmed that to have the disease, one has to have a history of repetitive brain trauma.
