A post-mortem examination of Phillip Adams, a former American football player and author of a shooting last April, revealed that he was suffering from a neurodegenerative disease, called “chronic traumatic encephalopathy”. But how does this pathology arise? What are its symptoms? Explanations.
- Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a neurodegenerative disease that affects athletes practicing contact sports. Of 202 American football players who died, 110 athletes who passed through the NFL suffered from this pathology.
- This condition is manifested by changes in mood and behavior, dementia, changes in cognitive functions and muscle problems.
- This disease cannot be definitively diagnosed in living people. For the time being, no specific treatment can cure chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
In April 2021, former professional American football player, Phillip Adams, killed six people in the United States, before committing suicide. On December 14, neuropathologists from Boston University provided some insight into the shooting. They carried out a post-mortem examination of the 30-year-old’s brain and discovered that the author of the facts suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (ETC), a neurodegenerative disease.
According to medical specialists, the former NFL (National Football League) player had brain damage “unusually serious”. “Phillip Adams had an extraordinary amount of pathology associated with the frontal lobe, the area of the brain behind the forehead,” explained Ann McKee, director of the university’s ETC Center. The family of the 30-year-old clarified that the sportsman had suffered “several concussions” during his career.
A neurodegenerative disease that affects athletes
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a pathology that can affect athletes practicing contact sports (rugby, American football or boxing) or people who have received repeated blows to the head. This neurodegenerative condition is caused by repeated head trauma.
“Experts still don’t know why only some people with repeated head injuries develop chronic traumatic encephalopathy and how much trauma and force is required to trigger this condition. About 3% of athletes with multiple concussions (even seemingly minor) develop chronic traumatic encephalopathy”, can we read on the site of the MSD Manual, a medical information portal.
A study published in the journal JAMA Network in 2017 established a link between repeated head shocks suffered by American football players and the occurrence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. For the purposes of this work, American researchers analyzed the brain tissue of 202 deceased players. They found that 110 athletes who passed through the NFL were affected by this neurodegenerative disease. “We hope to raise awareness about this disease so that players can understand the risks… Phillip is not the first to have battled this disease and he won’t be the last.” said the Phillip Adams family.
Changes in mood and behavior
Patients with chronic traumatic encephalopathy may present with changes in mood (depression, irritability, suicidal thoughts) and behavior (aggressiveness, impulsiveness). This neurodegenerative pathology is also manifested by dementia and changes in cognitive functions, that is to say that patients lose their memory, become distracted or confused. Muscular problems can also appear when one suffers from this condition. In some people, these clinical signs do not occur for several years.
What are the possible treatments ?
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy cannot be definitively detected in living patients, making it difficult to find and diagnose. For the time being, no specific treatment can cure the disease. But psychological monitoring and medication, such as antidepressants, can be prescribed to relieve symptoms.
A few measures can prevent the appearance of this neurodegenerative pathology. “People who have suffered a concussion should rest and refrain from sports or other activities for a certain period of time”says the MSD Manual.
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