Research published in The BMJ by experts from Boston University and Mayo Clinic examined data from 1712 former professional American football players who died between 2008 and 2021. Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), which can only be diagnosed after death, was found in 93% of the 338 players who underwent brain examinations. It was determined that 31% of the cases were in the most severe stage of the disease, while approximately 60% met the criteria for dementia.
The researchers noted that the 93% rate may not represent all former athletes because players who donated their brains were more likely to have neurological symptoms.
Background
American is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we published a news article mentioning this name in the past 90 days; that article was dated September 5, 2026.