Source: lastwordonsports.com | Repost Duerson Fund 6/13/2022 –
With every concussion a football player suffers, their odds of getting chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE increase, and by the time they retire, almost every single player in the National Football League (NFL) will have had at least one (and more likely several) concussions throughout their career. In fact, in a recent study conducted on deceased football players, more than 99% had CTE. Unfortunately, myths around concussions in football still exist, making it difficult to increase the safety of the sport. Here are four myths that need to be corrected.
Mild Concussions Don’t Lead to CTE
This is one of the most pervasive myths surrounding concussions, especially for football players. Many people believe that if they only suffer a “mild” concussion, they aren’t at risk of developing CTE. Unfortunately, it’s not true. While one mild concussion over the course of a lifetime will probably not have any lasting effects, multiple mild concussions change the brain’s function over time and can lead to CTE. One of the main indicators of CTE is repeated head trauma, whether that trauma is classified as mild or severe.