At least one-quarter of recently deceased NFL players had chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), retrospective data suggested.The estimated CTE prevalence among players who died from 2016 to 2021 ranged from 24.5% to 97.7%.Severe CTE was frequently associated with dementia symptoms.
At least one in four former National Football League (NFL) players who died from 2016 to 2021 had chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a retrospective study suggested.
Among all NFL players who died from 2008 to 2021, the possible prevalence of CTE, a disorder associated with repetitive head impacts, ranged between 18.5% and 98.7%, reported Daniel Daneshvar, MD, PhD, of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and co-authors.
Among those who died from 2016 to 2021 -- when brain donation was most frequent -- possible CTE prevalence was between 24.5% and 97.7%.
Stage IV CTE pathology, indicating the most severe form of the disease, was associated with symptoms of dementia (risk ratio 1.44, 95% CI 1.16-1.78, P<0.001), the researchers wrote in The BMJ.
