An interest study was published in the Archives of Rehabilitation Research and Clinical Translation reviewing measurable cognitive differences in MMA fighters that lost via chokehold compared to those that lost via KO/TKO and a control group that lost by neither. In the study, titled Mixed Martial Arts: Comparing the King-Devick and Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 5 … More Study – Chokeholds Do Not Result in “Statistically Significant” Cognitive Symptoms Compared to KO’s and TKO’s

This week a research article was published by the European Society in Medicine calling for better brain health awareness in sport. In short the neurosurgeon author discussed the inherent vulnerability of the brain to repeated subconcussive impact, its ties to dementia and CTE and the need for better education in sport about this blunt reality … More Neurosurgeon Calls for Better Brain Health Education in Sport

This week a study was published at the National Library of Medicine discussion and contrasting eye injury rates in Boxing and MMA. The authors reviewed data from the Nevada Athletic Commission for Boxing and MMA bouts for a 20 year period form 2000-2020. In short they found that boxing had higher eye injury rates than … More Study – Eye Injury Rates in Boxing and MMA

Older fighters require special consideration when it comes to licencing. According to the Association of Ringside Physicians these athletes are at increased risk of “neurological, orthopedic, and ophthalmological injuries” and they require extra care when being cleared for competition. They further note that an athletes “past athletic achievements” matter little and regulators should be instead … More Ringside Doctors – Older Fighters At Increased Risk of Brain, Bone and Eye Injuries

This month the Association of Ringside Physicians, doctors specializing in overseeing the health and safety of athletes at combat sports events, published their latest position statement on headgear. In short they state that “Headguards should not be relied upon to reduce the risk of concussion or other traumatic brain injury. They have not been shown … More Ringside Doctors – Headgear Doesn’t Help With Concussions

CTE cannot be confirmed until after death. However in 2021 criteria were agreed upon to diagnose suspected CTE in the living. Doctors call it Traumatic Encephalopathy Syndrome (“TES”). This month research was published in the Journal Neurology showing value in the use of the TES diagnosis. In the study, titled Longitudinal Changes in Regional Brain … More Fighters With Suspected CTE Show Reduced Brain Volume and Cognitive Decline in Longitudinal Study

Many studies dealing with brain damage in sport focus on professional rather than amateur athletes. There is no reason to think trauma created harm cares about whether an athlete is being paid or not for their serial brain rattling and gathering data from amateur sport is equally important. To this end a recent study was … More Study – Amateur Boxers Have Triple The Rates of Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease Compared To General Population

CTE is a disease of mileage. The more brain rattling you are exposed over the greater number of years the greater the risk. This week researchers from Boston University published a study shedding perhaps the best light to date on this reality. In short they found that the collective force of the cumulative hits your … More Study – Collective Force of Career Brain Rattling Strong Predictor of CTE