In the last decade there has been great progress in public understanding that concussions are a form of traumatic brain injury, not simply ‘getting your bell rung’.
Current studies are showing, however, that sub-concussive blows over a prolonged period are equally troubling and a recent article published in the Journal of Neurosurgery Clinics of North America highlights this.
In short the authors of the article, titled “Repetitive Head Impacts and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy” note current literature indicates that “the number of years of exposure to contact sports, not the number of concussions, is significantly associated with more severe tau pathology in CTE, suggesting that repetitive head trauma, including sub-concussive injury, is the primary stimulus for the disease” a message that should resonate to all who choose to pursue either amateur or professional combative sports.
The full article can be purchased here.
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