At Least 25 Percent Of Dead NFL Players Diagnosed With CTE In Sample, Study Says

According to a study published Tuesday in the British Medical Journal, at least one in four NFL players who passed away between 2016 and 2021 had chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease.

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The study focused on CTE and its prevalence among NFL players. Results show that out of 878 players who made at least one appearance in an NFL game and died in the study’s six-year window, at least 25 percent had CTE. (RELATED: 49ers Owner Jed York Arrested After Allegedly Trying To Pay Prostitute)

Only after death can CTE be diagnosed, so the majority of research depends on brains that are donated by families or the players themselves. The study’s samples were donations from 2008-2021, with 93 percent being diagnosed with the disease. The sample was narrowed based on the time frame for the highest donations, demographic data, and death certificate information.

According to Dr. Daniel Daneshvar, the study’s lead author, the 25 percent estimate is on the “low end.” The study found that the maximum potential frequency of CTE was approximately 97 percent; however, the true number “is somewhere in the middle,” according to Daneshvar.

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“This study is a sobering reminder that football carries real risks, and those risks can have lasting consequences for players and their families,” the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) told ESPN in an official statement. “It also reinforces one of the NFLPA’s core priorities: improving player safety and supporting players throughout their lives, both during and after their careers.”

“The findings should serve as a call to action across the entire football ecosystem. We all share a responsibility to advance research, improve access to care, develop better treatments, and support those affected by the long-term impacts of the game.”

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