Playing Football Increases Parkinson Disease Risk

Playing organized American football was associated with a 61% greater risk of eventually developing Parkinson’s Disease. Neurologic disease investigators at Boston University’s Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy and Alzheimer’s Disease Research Centers surveyed 1875 men for diagnoses of Parkinson’s and tabulated their participation in football or other sports looking at duration, level, and age of first play.

Of the group, 85% were diagnosed with Parkinson’s, 39% played football for a mean duration of 4.4 years. Any play increased the odds of Parkinson’s by 61%, longer duration of play increased risk by 12% but a higher level of play increased the odds nearly 3-fold (2.93).

BU neurologists were the first to recognize CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, in professional football players. They now present this evidence that repeated head trauma on the gridiron may also lead to Parkinson’s Disease.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2808207

#football #parkinsons #cte #headtrauma #encephalopathy #bostonuniversity #neurology