Whether you recently suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Poway or elsewhere in Southern California, you should learn about a recent study that identifies potential biomarkers for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). According to an article in MedPage Today discussing the study, researchers have determined that brain region volume may help us to better understand CTE and ways that repeated concussions can result in degenerative brain conditions. The new study specifically assessed boxers and MMA fighters who showed “distinct brain injury patterns.” We will tell you more about the recent study and what its implications could be for future CTE studies and brain injury claims.

Tracking Brain Injury in Athletes and Other People with Repetitive Head Impacts

Many recent studies surrounding TBIs and other serious brain injuries differentiate between one-time head trauma and repeated head injuries, such as multiple concussions. The recent study specifically assessed repetitive head impacts, or RHI, among professional fighters. That study was conducted by a team of researchers led by Dr. Charles Bernick of the Cleveland Clinic. According to the article, Bernick’s research showed that “active professional fighters showed different patterns of brain volume loss than fighters who have retired from the ring,” and “these differences may lead to biomarkers to track changes in people with repetitive head impacts.”

More precisely, “retired fighters had the most significant volumetric declines in the right hippocampus and in the left amygdala compared with controls, which could be the result of a progressive neurodegenerative process like chronic traumatic encephalopathy . . . or Alzheimer’s disease.” As Bernick clarified, the study suggests that health care providers may be able to use MRI imaging to measure the volume of a person’s brain region after sustaining repeated hits to the head, and certain types of brain volume loss in particular regions of the brain may be signs of CTE or other degenerative diseases. The results of the study appeared in the journal Neurology.

Bernick emphasized that, although the findings could be significant, there is a need for further research and “validation in other cohorts.” Bernick suggested that the type of study he conducted along with other researchers be tested on others who often sustain repeated head injuries, such as service members in the military or athletes who play contact sports like football or soccer.

Early Signs of CTE and Repeated Brain Injury

While CTE cannot be diagnosed definitively while a person is living, studies like the recent one reported by MedPage Today suggest that there are potential methods for health care providers to identify early signs that CTE and other degenerative brain conditions may result.

In addition, the Mayo Clinic cites some of the following as possible symptoms of CTE:

• Difficulty thinking;
• Impulsive behavior;
• Depression;
• Difficulty planning;
• Difficulty carrying out tasks; and
• Short-term memory loss.

Contact a Poway Brain Injury Lawyer

Many traumatic brain injuries occur because of another party’s negligence, from head trauma in car crashes to recreational sports. If you or someone you love recently sustained a concussion or another type of TBI, you may be eligible to file a claim. An experienced Poway brain injury attorney can speak with you today about your case. Contact the Walton Law Firm for more information about our personal injury services.

See Related Blog Posts: More Concussions in Poway Soccer Players E-Scooters Cause Brain Injuries and Broken Bones in and Around San Diego

If your child plays football or another contact sport in Vista, it is important to learn more about a recent study suggesting that other hits to the head—and not just concussions—can cause chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). According to a recent report in the Washington Post, a new study has examined the brains of teenage athletes and has determined that signs of CTE appear even when those teen athletes did not sustain concussions but simply received hits to the head.

Since information about CTE and traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) entered into our lexicon, we have been taught that concussions are the cause of this degenerative disease. Now, however, it looks as if blows to the head that are not severe enough to cause a concussion may also result in this debilitating and ultimately deadly disease.

Concussions May be Irrelevant in Triggering CTE

According to Dr. Lee Goldstein, one of the authors of the recent study and an associate professor at Boston University School of Medicine and College of Engineering, “the concussion is really irrelevant for triggering CTE.” Rather, he explained, “it’s really the hit that counts.” This study undercuts years of news headlines about CTE and its causes, which have linked concussions to the degenerative disease. Now, this new study suggests, any type of hit to the head may end up having significant long-term health implications.

The study was conducted by research at Boston University, and the findings were published in the peer-reviewed neurology journal Brain. It involved analysis of the brains of teenagers who had sustained head injuries in conjunction with head trauma in mice. The researchers concluded that “the same brain pathology that we observed in teenagers after head injury was also present in head-injured mice.” In both cases, the brain pathology had no ties to concussions. As such, Goldstein clarified, the “findings provide strong causal evidence linking head impact to TBI and early CTE, independent of concussion.”

Many Athletes with Signs of CTE do Not Have a History of Concussions

Previously, doctors believed that CTE was linked to a history of multiple concussions. Yet that causal assumption could not explain why many athletes—about 20%—who show signs of CTE do not have a history of concussions. Goldstein explained how important it will be to treat athletes who sustain hits to the hit that do not rise to the level of concussion in order to prevent further trauma that could lead to CTE. “There are many players who are hit, who are hurt and who aren’t getting help because it’s clear they’re not at the level of concussion. Their brains are not in good shape and they go on to the next hit and the next one.”

The clear takeaway message is this: Repeated hits to the head, even when those hits to the head are not significant enough to cause a concussion, eventually can lead to CTE. While researchers are continuing to explore the reasons that CTE manifests in some cases and not in others, it is important for teen athletes in particular to avoid taking hits to the head.

Contact a Vista Brain Injury Lawyer

Was your teen recently diagnosed with a head injury or a concussion as a result of playing contact sports? You should speak with an experienced Vista brain injury attorney about your case. Contact the Walton Law Firm to learn more about options for seeking compensation.

See Related Blog Posts: San Clemente Teens and Concussion Risks: What do Parents Need to Know? New Study Addresses High School Football and Traumatic Brain Injury

(image courtesy of Jesse Orrico)

Typically, fictionalized film versions of real-life events often do not have a significant impact on the way youth athletes play football or make decisions about sports-related concussions. However, according to a recent report from NPR, the movie Concussion is seriously affecting decisions made by high school football players and their families. The film details the traumatic brain injury (TBI) research of Dr. Bennet Omalu, “the doctor who was the first to publish research on the degenerative brain disease he called chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.”

High School Athletes Deciding Against Future Play For Californians who have not heard of CTE or its effects, it is a degenerative disease of the brain that appears to develop as a result of multiple hits to the head that cause concussions. Given that football players commonly experience multiple concussions over their careers, CTE has become known as a serious risk for professional athletes. Nw, it looks as though youth players are also reconsidering the risks inherent in contact sports.

Could growing debates about CTE, and the ways in which multiple concussions can lead to debilitating symptoms in adulthood, actually change the way in which high school football players approach the sport? It seems as though the ever-expanding news about the risks of CTE and sports-related concussions could indeed prevent high schoolers from continuing to take the field in college and afterward. For instance, one high school football player interviewed for the NPR report, John Castello, indicated that “he turned down multiple football scholarships” after seeing the movie Concussion.

The film alone, which stars Will Smith as Dr. Bennet Omalu, was not the only factor in Castello’s decision to stop playing football once he reaches college. Rather, the movie encouraged him to do his own research into CTE findings and the high rate at which this disease appears to affect football players. According to Castello, “I watched interviews with Dr. Omalu and that kind of really gave me some insight onto what could happen if I kept on playing football and some of the injuries that could occur.”

Assessing the Long-Term Consequences of High School Injuries Until he saw Concussion, Castello admitted that he had not considered the long-term consequences of a high school football injury. Castello sustained a brain injury during play last year, but he did not consider that he could experience serious consequences years later as a result of that head trauma. As he told NPR, “I kind of just shrugged it off, didn’t think it was much of anything.” Once he viewed Concussion, however, he realized that playing football and sustaining concussions on the field could have lifelong repercussions.

After thinking more about the potentially debilitating impact of concussions, Castello decided to turn down several college football scholarships. While the young athlete’s family does not have the ability to pay for his college education, he told NPR, “I’d rather be paying off student loans than having trouble getting down the stairs . . . in the morning.”

It is important for high school athletes to have sustained brain injuries to know that they may be eligible to file a claim for compensation. An experienced San Diego brain injury attorney can help. Contact the Walton Law Firm today for more information.

See Related Blog Posts: Mild Head Injuries Cause Long-Term Impairments Sports-Related Concussions, Science, and the NFL