Concussions come with a risk of chronic traumatic encephalopathy

On Behalf of | Aug 14, 2017 | Blog

Many people see concussions and other similar brain injuries as minor, incurring no major life effects. Recently, it has come to light that this isn’t the case. A study has shown that people who played football in high school are at risk of lifelong and life-threatening problems.

The risk of lifelong issues comes from a condition known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE. While this condition is often associated with football, any person who suffers a concussion or repeated concussions might suffer from this condition.

The frightening statistics

One thing that makes CTE such as frightening condition is that there isn’t a way to diagnose it before a person dies. Currently, the person’s brain has to be examined, which is only possible during the autopsy. Out of 111 brains of former NFL players that their family members donated to the study, 110 were found to have CTE.

Even more troubling is that 48 out of 53 college players and three out of 14 high school football players also suffered from the condition. This shows that it doesn’t matter how young a person is when they suffer the hits to the head, the condition can still begin to manifest.

A troubling condition

CTE is a troubling condition because it is associated with major emotional and behavioral changes that make life difficult for the person and those around them. A person who was usually nice, calm and pleasant will end up becoming angry, short-tempered and violent. This isn’t done by choice, it is because of the degrading of the brain.

Another issue that comes up sometimes is paranoia. This often makes the other issues even more pronounced. This often comes along with symptoms that seem to be associated with dementia, such as memory loss and a cognitive decline.

In some cases, CTE is a condition that leads the person to die by suicide. This is often very difficult for the family members to understand because the person might not have been someone who would have done that if it hadn’t been for the condition.

The risk of CTE is one reason why it is imperative that anyone who has suffered a hit to the head, including one in a car crash, gets proper medical care. This is often a costly endeavor. If you suffered a brain injury that was due to someone else’s negligence, you might choose to seek compensation in an effort to cover the monetary impact of the injury.

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