A study commissioned by the National Football League found that the 1,063 former players surveyed have been diagnosed with memory-related diseases at a much higher rate than the national population.
This is one of those stories where we have the "what" nailed down but not the "why" or the "how often."
The New York Times reported this week:
"This is a game-changer -- the whole debate, the ball's now in the NFL's court,' said Dr. Julian Bailes, the chairman of the department of neurosurgery at the West Virginia University School of Medicine, and a former team physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers whose research found similar links four years ago. 'They always say, 'We're going to do our own studies.' And now they have.
"Sean Morey, an Arizona Cardinals player who has been vocal in supporting research in this area, said: 'This is about more than us -- it's about the high school kid in 2011 who might not die on the field because he ignored the risks of concussions.' "
The story does point out that a phone survey may not be the most reliable way to find out if somebody has memory related issues and says:
"The Michigan researchers found that 6.1 percent of players age 50 and above reported that they had received a dementia-related diagnosis, five times higher than the cited national average, 1.2 percent. Players ages 30 through 49 showed a rate of 1.9 percent, or 19 times that of the national average, 0.1 percent."
Additional resourcesThe New York Times has done some in-depth coverage of sports injuries, especially among younger players.
The Times reported in August:
"Last year, The New York Times published 15 articles on the occasionally devastating results of repeated concussions. The cases involved high school and college students as well as professional athletes. Nearly all had returned to play before they had fully recovered from a direct or indirect blow to the head, and a second or third hit put them on the bench for good.
"The consequences of a repeat concussion were often long-lasting and sometimes permanent: persistent headaches, fatigue, difficulty paying attention, memory problems, mood swings and personality changes. In a few cases, the result was death.
"At least four American high school students died last year from football head injuries. Most suffered from what is called second-impact syndrome, a rare but catastrophic dysregulation of brain activity that can occur when a young player sustains another hit before the brain has recovered from an earlier concussion."
In 2007, the Times ran a video about "high school football's hidden danger."The Sports Injury Bulletin has provided some information about head injuries and brain damage in football.
