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The number and strength of head impacts, not concussions, cause degenerative brain injuries to football players, a new study suggests. That’s what appears to drive the growing number of cases of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), researchers say. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a progressive and fatal brain disease associated with repeated traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). It is also linked to the development of dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. In this new study of 631 deceased football players, researchers found that the odds of developing CTE were related to the number of head impacts they experienced and how hard those impacts were. “These results provide added evidence that repeated non-concussive head injuries are a major driver of CTE pathology rather than symptomatic concussions, as the medical and lay literature often suggests,” said senior author Dr. Jesse Mez, co-director of clinical research at the Boston University CTE Center. These new data might provide football with ways to prevent CTE, according to researchers. “This study suggests that we could reduce CTE risk through changes to how football players practice and play,” said lead author Dr. Dan Daneshvar, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and physician-researcher at Mass General Brigham. “If we cut both the number of head impacts and the force of those hits in practice and games, we could lower the odds that athletes develop CTE.”… read on > read on >

More than 7,500 people were killed last year after being struck by vehicles while walking along or across U.S. roadways — the most pedestrian deaths in more than four decades, according to a new report. This sobering trend was not surprising to experts who track the numbers. But they were dismayed by the consistent increase — up 77% since 2010. “This is unacceptable. It’s really mind-boggling. It hard to wrap your head around, at least it’s hard for me to wrap my head, 20 deaths every single day,” said Adam Snider, a spokesman for the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), which reported state-by-state numbers this week. “And then when you think about how many people each single death affects: family members, neighbors, friends, mentors, pastors, how many other people we touch in our daily lives,” Snider said. “To think of all those ripple effects, I’m sometimes at a loss for words, just with how unfortunate and awful the situation is.” While pedestrian deaths have been rising sharply over the past dozen years, other traffic-related deaths also increased but at a lower 25%. GHSA used data from state highway safety offices in 49 states and Washington, D.C., for its report. Oklahoma did not provide state data, but has averaged 92 deaths annually in recent years. The projected 7,508 pedestrian deaths nationwide last year was up 1%… read on > read on >

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can have long-term effects, much like a chronic condition, a new study says. Looking at hundreds of patients, researchers found that problems related to traumatic brain injuries can last for years, with people improving and declining at different time points. These problems encompassed memory, thinking and everyday functioning. “TBI is essentially a chronic condition like many other chronic conditions,” said lead researcher Benjamin Brett, an assistant professor in the Departments of Neurosurgery and Neurology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. “Things can change, both up and down, improve and decline throughout multiple years.” Because of this, there’s a need to monitor patients “well beyond that post-injury period,” Brett said. “We need to establish systems of care that involve continued monitoring and treatment.” The idea may be controversial, however. A chronic condition implies an underlying disease that is expected to change and/or get worse in predictable ways, said Dr. Daniel Torres, a neurologist at Northwell Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. “I would not consider TBI a chronic condition because it is an unpredictable condition with which different individuals can have greatly different consequences,” Torres said. For the study, Brett and his colleagues collected data on more than 900 people who had mild TBIs, mostly concussions, and nearly 200 people who had moderate to severe TBI. These were conditions like… read on > read on >

Alzheimer’s robs its victims of their memories and there is no cure, but there are things you can do to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. With Alzheimer’s, two types of brain proteins, called tau tangles and beta-amyloid plaques, grow out of control. According to Harvard Health, these proteins destroy brain cells and cause symptoms like confusion, memory loss and personality changes. Yet, there are many preventive measures that can be taken to reduce your risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Here are six ways you can help prevent this debilitating condition and protect your brain health. How to prevent Alzheimer’s Exercise According to Alzheimer’s Society UK, the results of 11 studies revealed that Alzheimer’s risk was reduced by 45% for middle-aged people who exercised regularly. Older people have also been scientifically shown to benefit from exercise, which helps improve memory and thinking. While the reasons exercise is so beneficial for reducing Alzheimer’s risk are still being researched, one study published in Nature Metabolism points to a hormone called irisin that’s released during physical activity. The researchers showed that this hormone has positive effects on cognition and nerve inflammation in the brain. “The most convincing evidence is that physical exercise helps prevent the development of Alzheimer’s or slow the progression in people who have symptoms,” Dr. Gad Marshall, director of clinical trials at Brigham & Women’s Center for Alzheimer Research… read on > read on >

A pro football career can mean chronic pain after retirement, but Black players are especially hard-hit, a new study finds. The study, of nearly 4,000 former National Football League (NFL) players, found that Black men reported more intense, more debilitating pain than their white counterparts. They were also more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety or fatigue — and those problems were often related to their pain levels. Researchers said the findings speak to a larger, well-documented issue: Black Americans are more affected by chronic pain, and less likely to have it effectively treated, than white people. And it appears those disparities are not erased by the status and resources that can come with being a professional athlete. “I do think it’s striking that this disparity is still seen in a group of people that has relatively more advantage than the average American,” said lead researcher Robert Edwards, a clinical psychologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s Pain Management Center in Boston. It all suggests that racial disparities in chronic pain are not explained by health insurance and access to health care alone. “It’s more complicated than that,” Edwards said. “We have known about some of the risk factors for adverse pain-related outcomes, and they include low social support, depression and anxiety.” Those risk factors, he added, are both more common among Black Americans, and —… read on > read on >

It can be challenging for people with type 1 diabetes to exercise safely while controlling their blood sugar. People with the condition often struggle with this balance, according to a new study based on a survey conducted through social media groups restricted to adults with type 1 diabetes who run, jog or walk for exercise. The survey findings were presented Thursday at a meeting of the Endocrine Society, in Chicago. “Managing high and low blood sugar levels before, during and after aerobic exercise remains one of the greatest challenges for people living with type 1 diabetes,” said lead researcher Dr. Joseph Henske, an endocrinologist at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. “This study provides a number of key insights into the degree to which published guidelines and recommendations surrounding exercise with type 1 diabetes are understood and implemented in the real world,” he said in a meeting news release. In all, 102 adults with type 1 diabetes responded to the survey. Of those, 68% said they exercised four or more days per week, with weekly average of 23 miles. Nearly all (97%) said they used continuous glucose monitors. About 75% used insulin pumps. The respondents had a self-reported average HbA1C of 7.1%, indicating their diabetes was well-controlled. HbA1C is a measure of average blood sugar levels over the past three months.… read on > read on >

Drowning is the leading cause of death among children aged 1 to 4 years old in the United States, and too many older children continue to die in the water, according to a new report from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). A child can slip underwater in the seconds it takes a parent to send a text message. Or while a caregiver turns away to pick up a smartphone. “The fatalities from drowning and non-fatal drowning injuries are still high, so water safety vigilance remains crucially important this summer and all year,” CPSC chair Alex Hoehn-Saric said in an agency news release. For children younger than 15, an average of 371 pool- or spa-related fatal drownings occurred each year between 2018 and 2020, according to the annual report. In 2020, that number was 340, down 7% from the previous year. In 2022, there were 6,400 non-fatal drowning injuries, statistically the same as in 2021. The annual report provides information on fatal drownings for 2018 through 2020 and on nonfatal drownings for 2020 through 2022 because of a lag time in fatality statistics. Pools, hot tubs and the like contribute to thousands of visits to emergency rooms annually. Through 2022, there were an estimated 6,300 pool- or spa-related hospital emergency department-treated, nonfatal drowning injuries each year. About 76% of these nonfatal drowning injuries involved… read on > read on >

Extreme heat can be dangerous, but you can stay cool and safe this summer if you take the right precautions. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) offers some tips for doing so. “No matter your age, it is critical to be able to recognize the signs of heat-related illness,” said Dr. Jocelyn Ross Wittstein, an orthopedic surgeon at Duke Health in North Carolina and an AAOS spokesperson. “When we exercise, our bodies cool off by sweating. We become dehydrated if we do not replace the fluids that we lose through perspiration,” she said in an AAOS news release. “Dehydration makes it difficult to sweat and cool down and can result in a heat injury ranging from mild cramps to a more life-threatening heat stroke.” It’s important to stay cool and hydrated. About 70% to 90% of the energy that a person’s body produces during regular exercise is released by heat, according to the AAOS. Environment, clothing and dehydration can hinder heat release and perspiration. Wittstein suggests consulting with your doctor before starting a new exercise activity if you have a health condition, like heart or lung disease, or take medication that could cause dehydration. Then, increase the intensity and duration of your exercise program gradually. Avoid wearing protective equipment at the start of training. Get and stay hydrated before, during and after exercise, even… read on > read on >

Gymnasts make it look easy, but mastering those floor exercises and balance beam moves can take a toll on the brain. Researchers studying preseason and regular season concussion rates in college sports found that women’s gymnastics led all others for its concussion rate in the preseason. The rate was 50% higher even than that for college football players. Unlike soccer and football, gymnastics hasn’t historically been considered a high concussion risk, said lead researcher Steven Broglio, director of the University of Michigan Concussion Center. “Everybody worries about football, ice hockey and men’s and women’s soccer, but gymnastics is out there by themselves with a preseason injury risk that we didn’t expect to see,” Broglio said in a university news release. “We now need to look at how to improve the health and safety of the athletes.” Researchers studied sport-related concussion rates for NCAA sports during the preseason practice period and regular season from the 2013-2014 year through the 2018-2019 year. In the preseason, roughly nine gymnasts for every 10,000 athlete participations experienced concussion, while about six football players per 10,000 athlete participations experienced concussion during the preseason. While the preseason sessions are practices only, the regular season includes practice and competition. The findings were presented June 2 at the American College of Sports Medicine annual meeting in Denver. Such research is considered preliminary until published… read on > read on >

Summer is here and so, too, is swimming season. As fun as a pool can be, it’s also a major safety risk if you don’t take the appropriate precautions. An expert from Huntington Health, an affiliate of Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, offers some tips for a safe pool season. “If children or non-experienced swimmers will be in the pool, it’s very important to have adult supervision. I think asking another child to watch after their sibling, for example, is not adequate,” said Dr. Amal Obaid-Schmid, medical director of trauma services at Huntington Health. “You need a supervisor who’s an adult, who is not distracted with their cellphone, or a phone call inside the house, or a conversation with another adult, really taking that role very seriously. Not letting your eye off the child is huge because drowning can happen in an instant,” she said in a Cedars-Sinai news release. More children aged 1 to 4 die from drowning than any other cause of death, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pool owners should be sure to have a fence at least four feet high around their pool, Obaid-Schmid advised. Keep a variety of flotation devices in and around the pool — a life jacket plus pool noodles or a paddle board — so that a drowning person has something to grab… read on > read on >