As West Virginia residents may know, a recent study that has been released by the Public Broadcasting System says that 96 percent of deceased NFL players who were tested by researchers suffered from disease of the brain. The results of the study were discussed on a national show carried by PBS. The study, performed by a major university and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, also included former high school or college football players as well as those who played semi-professionally.
According to the study, chronic traumatic encephalopathy was discovered in 87 of the 91 brains of deceased NFL players that were studied. These players had donated their brains for study after they died because they believed that they had suffered a brain injury. CTE causes memory loss, dementia and nausea and is believed to be a result of head trauma that is repeated over time. Of the total number of brains included in the study, including non-professional players, CTE was found in 79 percent, or 131 out of the total of 165 studied.
The director of the neuropathology unit at the VA hospital in Boston believes the results agree with earlier research on the connection between brain injury and football. She stated that it was not a rare type of disease and is commonly found in large numbers of football players. In April 2015, the NFL settled a lawsuit by about 5,000 former football players for $765 million.
While brain injuries can result from contact sports, they can also be caused by falls, car crashes and blows to the heads in other types of incidents. A person who suffers a traumatic brain injury as the result of the negligence of another person may want to discuss with a personal injury attorney the available options for seeking compensation for the damages that have been sustained.