chronic traumatic encephalopathy

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Author of CTE Study: 'I Had to Double-Check the Numbers'

Boston University researchers release new analysis

(Newser) - A new analysis delivers a stark figure for current and former NFL players: roughly three in four NFL players who died over a recent 15-year span "would have had some level of CTE [chronic traumatic encephalopathy] if autopsies were performed," the New York Times reports, calling it a...

Ex-NFL Lineman Makes Big Find in Advanced Math
Ex-NFL Player
Just Solved 'Big
Question' in Math
in case you missed it
Oct 11, 2026 6:40 AM CDT

Ex-NFL Player Just Solved 'Big Question' in Math

MIT professor (and former Raven) John Urschel tackles longtime problem of Gaussian elimination

(Newser) - A guy who used to protect NFL quarterbacks is now involved with something else entirely: one of math's most basic tools. The Washington Post profiles John Urschel , a former Baltimore Ravens lineman who walked away from the football league in 2017 over concerns about brain injuries and is now...

CTE Appears in 25% of NFL Players—Minimum
Scientists Estimate Rate of
CTE Among NFL Players
NEW STUDY
Aug 25, 2026 8:10 AM CDT

Scientists Estimate Rate of CTE Among NFL Players

Basically, somewhere between 25% and 97%

(Newser) - A new study puts a hard number on a question that's dogged the NFL: how many of its players die with CTE. Researchers from Mass General Brigham, writing in the British Medical Journal , estimate that at least 1 in 4 NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021 had the...

NFL's Kneeland Diagnosed With CTE After Death

24-year-old player had degenerative brain disease when he took his own life

(Newser) - Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland was in the earliest stage of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, when he died by suicide last year, his family disclosed Tuesday. The diagnosis, confirmed by Boston University's CTE Center, found that the 24-year-old had stage one of the degenerative brain disease, which...

Fish Oil Ingredient May Slow Brain Recovery After Injury
Fish Oil's Brain-Boosting
Rep Takes a Hit
NEW STUDY
Apr 28, 2026 8:42 AM CDT

Fish Oil's Brain-Boosting Rep Takes a Hit

Mouse study links omega-3 EPA found in fish oil to slower brain recovery after injuries

(Newser) - Fish oil's reputation as a brain booster just took a hit, at least in one very specific circumstance. A new study in Cell Reports found that eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), a key omega-3 found in many fish oil supplements, appeared to slow brain recovery in mice that had repeated traumatic...

Bears Legend Steve McMichael Had CTE

Researchers link his ALS and brain trauma from a long football career

(Newser) - Steve "Mongo" McMichael's final diagnosis adds another data point to football's mounting brain-injury toll, reports the Athletic . Boston University researchers have determined the late Chicago Bears star had stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, the Concussion & CTE Foundation announced Tuesday. McMichael, who died in April...

Killer at NFL Building Had CTE: Medical Examiner

Gunman in July shootings had played high school football

(Newser) - The man who police say shot to death four people in a Manhattan office building housing NFL headquarters last July had the degenerative brain disease CTE, the New York City medical examiner said Friday. The 27-year-old, who had played high school football, killed himself after leaving a note linking...

Ex-NFL QB Tried to Kill Himself. Then His Wife Ripped Him Off

Former football player Erik Kramer opens up about trauma, fraud, recovery on new podcast

(Newser) - Former NFL quarterback Erik Kramer faced a cascade of personal tragedies, a near-fatal suicide attempt , and devastating financial betrayal. Now, he's airing it all. In a new podcast from Johnathan Walton, The Quarterback and the Con Artist , Kramer details how, between 2015 and 2020, he tried to take...

Mayor: Shooter Targeted NFL, Took Wrong Elevator

Adams says Manhattan gunman claimed to have CTE and blamed the league

(Newser) - The investigation into Monday's mass shooting inside a midtown Manhattan skyscraper is indeed turning to the gunman's views of the NFL . New York City Mayor Eric Adams confirmed on Tuesday that authorities "have reason to believe that he was focused" on the league, reports the New York ...

1 in 3 Former Pro Footballers Think They Have CTE
1 in 3 Former Pro Footballers
Think They Have CTE
NEW STUDY
Sep 29, 2024 1:00 PM CDT

1 in 3 Former Pro Footballers Think They Have CTE

Researchers stress the need to manage treatable symptoms, like depression

(Newser) - The brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), linked to repeated hits to the head, can only be diagnosed after death via a brain autopsy. But many very-much-alive former professional football players believe they have it. Researchers surveyed 4,000 men who played in the American Football League and National Football...

NFL Gives Green Light to Guardian Caps in Games

League won't mandate soft-shell helmet covering in games, but players can wear if they want to

(Newser) - The NFL announced Friday it will allow players to wear protective soft-shell helmet covers known as Guardian Caps during games next season if they choose. The league is also expanding the use of the devices during practices. Defensive backs and receivers have joined the position groups now required to wear...

OJ Simpson's Brain Will Be Cremated With Him

Executor says there are no plans to donate his brain to science

(Newser) - On the question of whether OJ Simpson's brain will be donated to science, the executor of the football star's estate answered with a "hard no." Malcolm LaVergne, Simpson's longtime lawyer, tells the New York Post multiple requests have been made by experts who want to...

Family Blames CTE for Former NHL Star's Death
Former NHL 'Enforcer'
Dies by Suicide
obituary
Mar 20, 2024 12:40 PM CDT

Former NHL 'Enforcer' Dies by Suicide

Family blames CTE for Chris Simon's death

(Newser) - Former NHL star Chris Simon has died by suicide, and the 52-year-old's family believes his death was the result of a brain condition that affects athletes who have taken many blows to the head. Simon was an "enforcer"—a "tough guy" player expected to jump into...

The Next Clue Over Maine Shooting: Gunman's Brain

Late Robert Card's organ sent to Boston CTE Center to see if there were injuries from blasts

(Newser) - Since October's mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, that left 18 dead and injured more than a dozen others, investigators have been trying to piece together what led gunman Robert Card to carry out such a violent act. Now, Card's brain is being sent to Boston's CTE Center,...

In Largest Brain Study of Young Athletes, a 'Remarkable' Find
In Largest Brain Study of Young
Athletes, a 'Remarkable' Find
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Sep 3, 2023 4:15 PM CDT

In Largest Brain Study of Young Athletes, a 'Remarkable' Find

Researchers find 41% of late players under 30 showed signs of CTE

(Newser) - Diagnoses of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) have been found in pro football players , pro soccer players , and pro hockey players . Now, a new study out of Boston University's CTE Center focuses on a new demographic affected by CTE: mainly amateurs playing on the youth, high school, and college circuits....

First Female Athlete Diagnosed With CTE

Heather Anderson, who played Australian Rules football, took her life last year at age 28

(Newser) - An unwanted sports world first: Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the degenerative brain disease that has been increasingly diagnosed in male athletes, has for the first time been diagnosed in a female professional athlete. Scientists say Heather Anderson, who played Australian Rules football before she died by suicide last year at...

A Legend of Hockey Had CTE
A Legend of Hockey
Had CTE
Jun 15, 2023 2:15 PM CDT

A Legend of Hockey Had CTE

Montreal Canadiens great Henri Richard is diagnosed posthumously

(Newser) - The late Henri Richard is a hockey Hall of Famer who has a record 11 Stanley Cups on his resume and, now, a more troubling legacy: The Montreal Canadiens star had chronic traumatic encephalopathy when he died in 2020 at age 84, according to the Concussion Legacy Foundation Canada, per...

CTE Debate Moves From Football to Soccer

Concussion Legacy Foundation diagnoses 4 former pros amid contested summit on brain injury

(Newser) - English soccer star Jimmy Fryatt was known for his ability to head the ball, and the proof of his prowess may be in the damage it did to his brain. Still physically fit in his late 70s, the AP reports that the late Fryatt played tennis but couldn’t keep...

Critics on Weird Sport: 'One of the Stupidest Things You Can Do'

UFC President Dana White says slap fighting is just good fun, but concussion experts disagree

(Newser) - The competitors stand rigidly upright with their hands behind their backs, waiting to absorb a brutal slap to the face. When the open-handed blow is delivered, there's a sharp report and the reaction can be dramatic. Some fighters barely move, while others stumble backward or fall to the floor....

376 Ex-NFL Players' Brains Were Studied. 92% Had CTE
In CTE Study,
a Sky-High Number
Feb 8, 2023 12:48 PM CST

In CTE Study, a Sky-High Number

CTE found in 92% of ex-NFL players' brains that were studied

(Newser) - A Boston University study of the brains of deceased former football players had shocking results: More than 90% of them were diagnosed with the brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy. The Boston University CTE Center says that of 376 former players whose brains were studied, 345, or 91.7%, had CTE,...

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