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You have selected:Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)Video

Dr. Ann McKee: Thousands of Subconcussive Hits Can Lead to CTE

You don’t see it. There’s no blood, no pain. Even though players may not be immediately affected, we’re learning that those thousands of hits provoke neurogenerative disease. Dr. Ann McKee explains.

Dr. Ann McKee: Connecting CTE and Football

Dr. Ann McKee grew up a football fan and never considered the repetitive hits sustained by football players would lead to brain abnormalities identical to what she found in the brain of boxers.

Dr. Ann McKee: From Dementia Pugilistica to Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy

Punch drunk, dementia pugilistica, post-traumatic encephalopathy, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy — same criteria of diagnosis, the same patterns of change seen in the brain. Dr. Ann McKee explains.

Dr. Ann McKee: Are Some People More Susceptible to CTE?

Genes, sleep, an active mind, and when a person starts playing football may all play a factor in the development of CTE. Dr. Ann McKee explains what researchers have learned, and what's on the horizon.

Dr. Ann McKee and Donate Your Brain: Project Enlist

Dr. Ann McKee: Donate Your Brain: Project Enlist

Dr. Ann McKee wants to raise awareness about brain donation. The more brains that researchers have to study, the more information they can gather to help people in the future.

Dr. Ann McKee: CTE and the Military

Dr. Ann McKee explains why studying the effects of repetitive head trauma in the military is more complicated than studying athletes.

Dr. Ann McKee: CTE and Benefits vs. Risks of Sports

Dr. Ann McKee knows that physical exercise is healthy for the mind and the body, but it's important to do it safely to minimize the chances of brain injury.

Dr. Ann McKee: Why Doesn't the Brain's Plasticity Protect Us from CTE?

The brain's healing is limited. Each person has a limited number of neurons and Dr. Ann McKee talks about what it means when you lose them to a brain injury.

Dr. Ann McKee: The Work of a Neuropathologist

Dr. Ann McKee is a nerve pathologist who has spent decades learning about the brains of individuals who died from Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and CTE. She talks about what is involved in her study.

CTE: How Repeated Hits Affect the Brain

CTE: How repeated head blows affect the brain

Researchers believe that repeated hits to the head are the most likely cause of CTE.

Just the FAQs: Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)

USA Today's Just the FAQs explains Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, a neurodegenerative brain disease found in people who have experienced repetitive hits to the head.

What Are the Symptoms of CTE?

Dr. Stern discuss the symptoms of CTE, which include problems with memory and thinking, mood and emotion, and behavior.

Hits, Not Concussions, Cause CTE

Researchers have identified evidence of early CTE brain pathology after head impact, even in the absence of signs of concussion.

What is CTE?

Dr. Perl describes chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.

How Common is CTE?

Dr. Perl discusses reports of the prevalence of CTE in professional athletes.

Why Autopsies Matter

Dr. Perl explains why autopsies are so important in providing data for brain research.

Long-Term Effects of Brain Injury

Understanding the long-term impact of a single traumatic brain injury as well as cumulative and CTE.

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in the Military

Dr. Jack Tsao talks about research on military-related CTE and what questions are being asked — from who is most susceptible to can it develop from blast injuries rather than direct hits to the head.

Football High: Owen Thomas' Story

The issues of sports-related concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy were intensified when the brain of a deceased 21-year-old football player was examined.

The Research on Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy

Dr. Robert Cantu talks about how growing research is showing that CTE not only occurs in the brains of older athletes who have sustained multiple hits to the head, but also in athletes as 17.

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy: Homing in on Specifics in Research

Researchers are still learning why it is that head trauma is the main factor for CTE, but not all people with head trauma develop CTE.

Suicide in the NFL

Retired NFL player Thomas Jones talks about players who have committed suicide and how that has influenced how he thinks about football, living, and dying.

Will I Develop Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy from Playing Pro Football?

Will I Develop CTE from Playing Pro Football?

Retired NFL player Thomas Jones wonders if he will develop CTE from cumulative concussions sustained playing football, but there is nothing to do about it but exercise your brain, learn what you can, and share your life with your loved ones.

The Science and Art of Neuropathology

Neuropathology is like looking at the last frame of a movie. You can deduce a lot from that frame but what you can't deduce is the arc of the story that culminated in that final frame.

The Pathology of CTE Versus That of Other Neurodegenerative Diseases

So far, research shows that chronic traumatic encephalopathy does not occur in people who have not sustained repetitive hits to the head either in sports or in combat.

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