There is a “robust” association between dementia risk and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, a brain disease which can be caused by repetitive hits to the head during sports, Boston researchers have found.
Researchers at Boston University found that having CTE increases the odds of having dementia about four-and-a-half times, said Dr. Michael Alosco, neurology professor and co-director of clinical research at the Boston University CTE Center.
The study, published Tuesday in the Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, “brings us closer” to understanding the connection between CTE and dementia risk, Alosco said.
“For a while, we’ve understood Alzheimer’s disease to be the most common form of dementia,” said Alosco, a senior author of the study. “But here, we need to start appreciating CTE as a major contributor to dementia, and that needs to go on the radars of healthcare providers.”
Clinicians should “start looking for CTE and assessing for a history of repetitive head trauma, and recognizing that this is a disease that can have debilitating effects on a person’s thinking, memory, and the way they function on an everyday basis,” he said.
“Patients need to be heard, and clinicians need to recognize this as a form of dementia,” Alosco said.
Will this sound the alarm about CTE and sports?
It certainly does bring more cause for concern, Alosco said.
“There’s a lot of evidence showing the relationship between tackle football and the development of CTE, and now we’re kind of connecting the dots more: Tackle football, increasing risk of CTE, and now also resulting in things like dementia and how a person functions,” he said.
Other areas that researchers are looking into include how the risk for the degenerative brain disease differs across various sports, such as ice hockey, soccer, and tackle football, he said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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