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Tag: brain injuries

  • First professional female athlete diagnosed with degenerative brain disease CTE | CNN

    First professional female athlete diagnosed with degenerative brain disease CTE | CNN

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    Brisbane, Australia
    CNN
     — 

    Scientists in Australia have diagnosed the world’s first case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, in a professional female athlete, with implications for millions of girls and women who play contact sport.

    Heather Anderson, an Australian Football League (AFL) player, was found to have low-stage CTE during an autopsy by scientists at the Australian Sports Brain Bank, whose peer-reviewed findings were published last week in the medical journal Acta Neuropathologica.

    CTE is a neurodegenerative disease that can occur after repeated traumatic brain injuries or hits to the head, with or without a concussion, and to date it has only been diagnosed in professional male athletes.

    But the rise of women’s participation in the same sports over the past two decades means they too are susceptible, the paper said, and especially so given research indicates that women are more vulnerable to concussion than men.

    “Colleagues overseas been watching the professionalization of women’s contact sports over the last 10 years, and the surge in popularity and surge in participation by women in contact sports, so we’ve all been sort of thinking sooner or later, this disease is going to pop up,” said neuropathologist Michael Buckland, the paper’s co-author.

    “It’s a bit like smoking and lung cancer. Early on lung cancer was enormous in men … and then women took up smoking in equal numbers. Then 20 years later, there was a big surge in women’s lung cancer,” said Buckland, a clinical associate professor at the University of Sydney.

    “So I think we’re at the start of seeing the consequences of that surge in participation, both at the amateur and professional level.”

    Anderson started playing football when she was five years old and went on to play contact sport for 18 years across two codes – AFL and rugby league – before her death by suicide at 28 last November, according to the paper.

    Her professional career included 8 games over the 2017 season with AFL Club the Adelaide Crows, before she suffered a shoulder injury that ended her sporting career. She also worked as a medic for the Australian Defence Force.

    Originally from Darwin, Anderson was known for wearing a bright pink helmet on the pitch so her vision-impaired mother could see her play. Scientists say helmets and headbands can prevent skull fractures but don’t keep the brain from moving around inside the skull when someone is hit.

    During her career, Anderson had one confirmed concussion, and suffered another suspected four, according to her family, who donated her brain to the Australian Sports Brain Bank for more answers as to why she died.

    According to the paper, Anderson had no known history of alcohol or non-prescription drug abuse and had not exhibited any signs of depression or unusual behavior in the months before her death.

    “While there are insufficient data to draw conclusions on any association between CTE and manner of death, suicide deaths are not uncommon in the cohorts where CTE is sought at autopsy,” the paper said.

    Buckland said Anderson’s diagnosis shows women’s contact sports also need CTE minimization plans to reduce players’ exposure to cumulative head injuries, and those plans need to start at the junior level.

    “I don’t think any child should be playing the contact version of a sport before high school,” he said. Other ways to reduce exposure include restricting contact during training, playing just one contact sport, and taking time off after a game when players have suffered hits, he said.

    Awareness of the risks of head injury in sport has been growing over the past two decades, and scientists are still working to examine the impact of repeated knocks on the brain.

    The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says “the research to date suggests that CTE is caused in part by repeated traumatic brain injuries, including concussions, and repeated hits to the head, called subconcussive head impacts.”

    Repeated knocks can lead to the degeneration of brain tissue and an unusual buildup of a protein called tau, which is associated with symptoms such as memory loss, confusion, impulse control problems, aggression, depression, impaired judgment and suicidal behavior.

    In the United States, the most recent research from the Concussion Legacy Foundation and Boston University’s CTE Center found that nearly 92% of 376 former NFL players who were studied were diagnosed with the brain disease. It’s also been found in the brains of former boxers, and ice hockey and soccer players.

    In Australia, lawyers representing dozens of former professional AFL players have filed a class action suit against the Australian Football League (AFL), seeking compensation for injuries caused by alleged negligence.

    The AFL has acknowledged a link between head trauma and CTE and says it’s committed to mitigating the risks. It was one of dozens of parties to provide submissions to an Australian government inquiry into the issue that is due to report on August 2.

    The AFL Player’s Association, which represents the athletes, is pushing for greater support for current and former players, many of whom are living with the impact of successive brain injuries.

    But Buckland said with so many other competing priorities, including broadcast rights and ticket sales, the industry can’t be expected to self-regulate, and an outside body needs to set the rules to ensure they’re followed.

    CTE has been diagnosed in people as young as 17, but symptoms usually don’t appear until years later.

    In 2019, about 15% of all US high school students reported one or more sports- or recreation-related concussions in the previous year, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Boys’ football, girls’ soccer and boys’ ice hockey were the sports with the highest concussion rates, according to the study.

    Buckland said what’s most needed is a shift in attitudes, so that it’s no longer encouraged or even acceptable to expose children to activities where repeated head injuries are part of the game.

    “It’s more than just a medical problem, it’s a sociological problem, as well. How do we change society? I think in the long run, it’ll be like smoking. (Stopping) smoking has taken generational change, and I think that’s what we’re looking at here.”

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  • 11 more US troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injury after attacks in Syria last month | CNN Politics

    11 more US troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injury after attacks in Syria last month | CNN Politics

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    CNN
     — 

    The military identified 11 additional cases of traumatic brain injury following a series of rocket and drone attacks on US troops in Syria in late March, according to a spokesman for US Central Command.

    The new cases bring the number of US personnel wounded in the attacks to a total of 25, including one US contractor who was killed at a facility in northeast Syria on March 23.

    “Our medical teams continue to assess and evaluate our troops for indications of [traumatic brain injury],” said Col. Joe Buccino, spokesman for CENTCOM.

    The series of attacks on US troops in Syria began March 23, when a suicide drone hit a facility near Hasakah in northeast Syria. The drone attack killed one US contractor and injured five US service members and another contractor, the military said at the time. The attack was attributed to militias affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

    In response, the US carried out a retaliatory airstrike against facilities used by IRGC-affiliated militias. In addition to destroying infrastructure, the attack killed eight militants, according to the Pentagon.

    One day later, the volatile situation escalated further when militant groups believed to be affiliated with Iran launched more attacks on US troops in Syria.

    A series of rockets were fired on US troops at Mission Support Site Conoco, injuring one service member. A short time later, three suicide drones targeted Green Village, another position with US troops. Two of the three drones were downed by air defense systems, while the third damaged a building but caused no injuries.

    One week after the attacks, the Pentagon said six service members had been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries, but cautioned the number may grow since symptoms develop over time.

    At the time, Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder stressed that the US “will take all necessary measures to defend our troops and our interests overseas.”

    “We do not seek conflict with Iran,” he said, “but we will always protect our people.”

    Mild traumatic brain injury, or concussion, is one of the most common forms of traumatic brain injury among service members. But traumatic brain injuries can also be debilitating; veterans described symptoms of dizziness, confusion, headaches, and irritability after sustaining traumatic brain injuries, as well as changes in personality and balance issues.

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  • Louisville gunman’s brain to be studied for CTE, father says | CNN

    Louisville gunman’s brain to be studied for CTE, father says | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    The family of Connor Sturgeon – who was killed after he fatally shot five people Monday morning at the Old National Bank in Louisville, Kentucky – plans to have his brain tested for chronic traumatic encephalopathy, commonly known as CTE, his father and a spokesperson for the family told CNN on Thursday.

    “Yes, Connor is being tested for CTE. Probably will take a while to get results,” Todd Sturgeon, Connor Sturgeon’s father, texted to CNN.

    Pete Palmer, a family friend who is speaking for the Sturgeons, said the family and the state medical examiner are looking to have Connor Sturgeon’s brain tested.

    The medical examiner’s office has completed most of its tests, and the process of testing for CTE will now begin, Palmer said.

    CNN has reached out to the Kentucky state medical examiner for further information.

    CTE, a neurodegenerative brain disease, can be found in people who have been exposed to repeated head trauma. Studies have found that repetitive hits to the head – even without concussion – can result in CTE.

    According to Palmer, the family thinks Sturgeon had three significant concussions – two as an eighth-grade football player and one in basketball as a high school freshman.

    The disease, which can only be diagnosed with an autopsy and neuropathological exam, is pathologically marked by a buildup of tau protein in the brain that can disable neuropathways and lead to a variety of symptoms including memory loss, confusion, impaired judgment, aggression, depression, anxiety, impulse control issues and sometimes suicidal behavior.

    Police have not released information about a motive in the shooting.

    The testing disclosure comes as more families are talking about their loved ones who were killed.

    The daughter of Juliana Farmer, one of the five who were killed, said Wednesday night her mother had just moved to Louisville two weeks prior for a new job at the bank.

    “This monster took away my mother, and I’m hurt because my mother moved here to help me, a single mom with four kids. I only got two weeks with her here in Louisville … a city she knew nothing about,” Alia Chambers told CNN. “I’m heartbroken. I hated him. I hated him but I forgive him because my mama is in a better place.”

    Farmer moved to Louisville from Henderson, Kentucky, and was thrilled to begin her role with Old National Bank as a loan officer.

    “My mom went from working at 19 years old at Kmart to sitting with executives at a bank. I’m gonna fulfill my mama’s dream. Either I’m going back to nursing school or I’m gonna ask them, can I take over her position at that bank,” she said. “She was so excited about that job. She was happy.”

    Farmer had three adult children and four grandsons, Chambers said.

    The day before she was killed, she found out her son, J’Yeon Chambers, was expecting a baby girl, he told CNN. The baby is due in September, the same month his mother was born.

    “And so it’s just crazy how she gets taken the day after we reveal that we’re having the baby. So my child is going to be her basically all over again,” her son said. “She gave us the name that she always wanted a girl to be named and we’re going to stick with it.”

    The new details come as CNN has learned more about the victims and wounded in Monday’s workplace mass shooting, including the survival of a woman who was seated between two people who were killed.

    Sturgeon, a 25-year-old Old National Bank employee, opened fire with an AR-15-style rifle in the bank about a half-hour before it was to open to the public, killing five colleagues before he was fatally shot by a responding officer. Farmer, Joshua Barrick, Tommy Elliott, Deana Eckert and James Tutt were shot and killed, police said.

    Of the eight people who were wounded, a 26-year-old police officer remains in critical condition after being shot in the head, requiring brain surgery.

    One woman who was shot but survived was seated in a conference room between Farmer and Elliott when the attack began, according to the father of her children, Rex Minrath.

    Dana Mitchell, an employee at the bank, has returned home from the hospital and is recovering, Minrath told CNN in a phone interview Thursday. She is expected to have surgery in the coming weeks to remove “the rest of the bullet,” he said.

    “Dana was in the conference room between Tommy and Juliana. She sat between those two,” Minrath told CNN. “And then when they hit the ground, they were all on the ground together. She is fortunate because both of them weren’t so lucky.”

    Mitchell’s son, Ross Minrath, posted a series of images and updates about his mother’s condition on his Facebook page this week.

    “After positive results from blood work and her being an all around badass, my Mom was released from the hospital today,” he wrote on Tuesday night. “She is very sore but doing well. Her phone has been at the bank and hopes to start reaching out herself tomorrow.”

    In one Facebook post, he said the gunshot bruised her lung and that doctors were able to clean the wound on her back. His mother, he added, “is the toughest I’ve ever known.”

    He thanked those who had reached out to the family with well wishes and asked for people to continue to send prayers for his mother.

    In addition, the first person who was shot inside the bank survived, a city official told CNN. In the shooter’s Instagram livestream of the attack, which has since been taken down, the female bank worker said “good morning” before the gunman warned her, “You need to get out of here,” according to an official familiar with the video.

    The woman had her back to the gunman as he struggled to get the safety off and load his AR-15-style weapon properly. He then shot her in the back, an official previously told CNN.

    beshear

    Gov. Beshear shares emotional memories of his friend killed in Louisville shooting

    At a vigil Wednesday evening, scores of residents and officials gathered to mourn publicly the employees gunned down at their workplace by a coworker.

    “It’s important that we take time to acknowledge those losses and what they mean for us as people and as a community,” Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said during the vigil at the Muhammad Ali Center Plaza. “So, that later we can gather our energies and focus on preventing these tragedies.”

    Greenberg noted the heartbreaking impacts of gun violence in his city beyond Monday’s carnage, which unfolded less than a mile from where the vigil was held Wednesday.

    “There will be a time to act. To take steps in honor of those we’ve lost and to channel our grief and pain into meaningful action. That day is coming,” the mayor continued. “Today is to mourn, to lean on each other and support each other.”

    Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said at the vigil that Elliott, a senior vice president at the bank, was one of his closest friends.

    “I’ll admit that while I am not angry, I am empty. And I’m sad. And I just keep thinking that maybe we’ll wake up,” Beshear said, his voice breaking.

    “What I know is, I just wish I’d taken an extra moment, made an extra call, tell him how much I care about him. And I know we are all feeling the same. But I also know they hear us now. And that they feel our love,” Beshear said.

    Louisville Body Cam

    Video shows officers walking head-on into gunfire to stop Louisville shooter

    Louisville police on Wednesday released a series of 911 calls showing the fear and panic both inside and outside the bank during the shooting early Monday morning.

    In one emergency call, a woman who identified herself as an employee of a different Old National Bank branch told the dispatcher she saw the massacre happen in real time while she was on a video call with colleagues at the scene.

    “How do you know you have an active shooter on site?” the operator asked.

    “I just watched it. I just watched it on a Teams meeting. We were having a board meeting,” she said. “I saw somebody on the floor. We heard multiple shots and people started saying ‘Oh my God,’ and then he came into the board room.”

    Another 911 call came from the gunman’s mother, who said her son was headed to the bank with a gun and expressed her shock and confusion.

    “My son might be (redacted) has a gun and heading to the Old National on Main Street here in Louisville,” she said. “This is his mother. I’m so sorry, I’m getting details secondhand. I’m learning about it now. Oh my Lord.”

    The woman said her son “apparently left a note” about the incident. “We don’t even own guns. I don’t know where he would have gotten a gun.”

    Other calls came from a bank employee speaking in a whisper who was hiding in a closet, a man who fled the building and took shelter at a nearby dental office, and another caller who hid under a desk inside the building.

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  • McConnell treated for concussion after suffering fall at DC hotel | CNN Politics

    McConnell treated for concussion after suffering fall at DC hotel | CNN Politics

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    CNN
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    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is being treated for a concussion and is staying at a hospital for observation after a fall at a hotel in Washington, DC, on Wednesday evening.

    “Leader McConnell tripped at a dinner event Wednesday evening and has been admitted to the hospital and is being treated for a concussion. He is expected to remain in the hospital for a few days of observation and treatment,” David Popp, communications director for McConnell, said in a statement released Thursday afternoon.

    “The Leader is grateful to the medical professionals for their care and to his colleagues for their warm wishes,” the statement said.

    The fall happened at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington, DC, which was formerly the Trump International Hotel, according to a source familiar with the matter.

    McConnell was attending an event for the Senate Leadership Fund, a McConnell-aligned super PAC, another source familiar with the matter said.

    The 81-year-old is the Senate’s longest-serving GOP leader, known for helping the party achieve key Republican priorities, including stocking the Supreme Court with conservative justices, passing Trump-era tax cuts and frequently thwarting Democrats’ legislative agenda.

    His hospitalization this week comes as the Senate is narrowly divided, with Democrats controlling the chamber by a 51-49 margin.

    Democratic Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Dianne Feinstein of California have also been hospitalized in recent weeks, with Fetterman seeking treatment for depression and Feinstein for shingles.

    Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have publicly sent McConnell well wishes.

    Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer opened his floor remarks on Thursday by wishing McConnell a “speedy and full recovery” and noted that he called McConnell Thursday morning and spoke briefly with his staff.

    House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he and his fellow House Democrats were praying for a “swift and a full and a speedy recovery,” a sentiment echoed by Senate Minority Whip John Thune, the second-ranking Republican in the Senate.

    The minority leader previously fell at his Kentucky home in 2019, fracturing his shoulder.

    This story and headline have been updated with additional information.

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  • US intelligence community cannot link ‘Havana Syndrome’ cases to a foreign adversary | CNN Politics

    US intelligence community cannot link ‘Havana Syndrome’ cases to a foreign adversary | CNN Politics

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    CNN
     — 

    The US intelligence community cannot link any cases of the mysterious ailment known as “Havana Syndrome” to a foreign adversary, ruling it unlikely that the unexplained illness was the result of a targeted campaign by an enemy of the US, according to a US intelligence assessment published on Wednesday.

    The latest conclusion comes years after the so-called syndrome first emerged and defies a theory that it could have been the result of a targeted campaign by an enemy of the US.

    The new assessment echoes an interim report from the CIA last year that found it unlikely that the “anomalous health incidents,” as they are formally known, were the caused by “a sustained worldwide campaign” by Russia or any other foreign actor.

    Wednesday’s assessment also goes further in finding that there is no credible evidence that a foreign adversary has a weapon or collection device that is capable of causing the mysterious incidents, US intelligence officials said.

    Officials also explained that the medical analysis has also evolved in a way that points away from adversarial involvement.

    “I can share with you that most IC agencies have now concluded that it is ‘very unlikely’ a foreign adversary is responsible for the reported AHIs. IC agencies have varying confidence levels because we still have gaps given the challenges collecting on foreign adversaries – as we do on many issues involving them,” said Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines.

    The mysterious illness first emerged in late 2016, when a cluster of diplomats stationed in the Cuban capital of Havana began reporting symptoms consistent with head trauma, including dizziness and extreme headaches. In subsequent years, there have been cases reported around the world, including clusters of at least 60 incidents in Bogota, Colombia and Vienna, Austria. There have been about 1,500 reported cases across the US government in 96 different counties including some cases reported this year, officials said Wednesday, but the number of reported incidents has dropped significantly in the last year.

    The assessment, the result of the work of seven intelligence agencies, draws on the immense resources of the US intelligence community, including a review of hundreds of incidents and a wide range of factors surrounding them, officials explained.

    Wednesday’s assessment, however, does not provide definitive answers on or what caused the ailment that has sickened hundreds of US government personnel and family members worldwide.

    There is no one explanation for these incidents. Instead, there are many different possible causes including environmental as well as social factors and preexisting medical conditions, officials said.

    The assessment is likely to lead to further frustration among those impacted who have chastised the US government for not taking the condition seriously enough or slow-rolling the investigation.

    “There is something counterintuitive to all of this. If doctors are diagnosing some of us with a qualified injury to the brain in the line of duty and we are not saying it was a foreign adversary, what was it from?” said one former CIA agency officer who experienced symptoms.

    The intelligence community workforce was notified of the assessment on Wednesday, officials said. Sufferers were notified in recent days that the assessment was coming and some received a call from CIA Director Bill Burns, one source said.

    In a statement, Burns said the assessment is “one of the largest and most intensive investigations in the Agency’s history,” stating that it “reflects more than two years of rigorous, painstaking collection, investigative work, and analysis by IC agencies, including CIA.”

    “I want to be absolutely clear: these findings do not call into question the experiences and real health issues that US Government personnel and their family members – including CIA’s own officers – have reported while serving our country,” he said.

    The investigative efforts were “extremely aggressive” and involved “a high degree of risk,” one official explained. Intelligence officers vigorously studied what happened in the hours, days and weeks surrounding the incidents, the official explained.

    In some instances they found malfunctioning HVAC systems, which can cause discomfort to humans, and in other cases there were computer mice that created surprising disruptions.

    “We weren’t finding what we expected to find,” said one of the US officials. “There is no one explanation for any of this.”

    There was also criminal activity that occurred around some of the incidents – such as the presence of weapons dealers. But when intelligence officials chased those leads – by looking into the criminals’ past, their family and their travels – they found no connection to the mysterious health incidents.

    Officials even considered extraterrestrials as a cause, but found no linkage, they said.

    Officials said that evidence pointed against foreign involvement, including citing “confusion” on the topic among key adversaries.

    On the whole, officials did not find evidence to validate one of their incoming assumptions that one or more state actor was causing the incidents, they explained.

    There is nothing to indicate that these incidents were the result of an insider attack, the officials said. The officials would not discuss if the US has a weapon that could have caused these incidents.

    The findings also follow a report from a panel of experts last year – including scientists inside and outside of government – that found that “pulsed electromagnetic energy” emitted by an external source could have “plausibly” caused the mysterious incidents. While the latest intelligence assessment doesn’t count out that possibility completely, it appears to cast doubt on it by concluding that no US adversary has the plausible weapon or mechanism that would be needed for that to happen.

    US officials said that one of the lessons learned from the investigation was that the US government needs to do a better job looking after the health and safety of the workforce.

    Over the last year, the CIA and the State Department began providing compensation to victims whose symptoms required at least a year of medical assistance. Compensation efforts are “separate and distinct” from the intelligence assessment and will continue to be implemented, officials said.

    Following the release of the assessment, administration officials were clear that support would continue.

    “We are going to continue to see to it that our colleagues who report these incidents are treated with respect and compassion, receive timely access to medical care and we’ll continue to process Havana Act payments based on the eligibility criteria that’s been spelled out in the law,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said.

    However, the future of the US government’s probe into these incidents is a bit murky.

    Officials would not definitively say if the intelligence community’s task force devoted to this effort would stay up and running, but Haines said that the work “will and must endure.” The Pentagon also has a team of experts that continues to investigate the matter.

    This story has been updated with additional information.

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  • Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered concussion on Sunday, head coach says | CNN

    Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered concussion on Sunday, head coach says | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, head coach Mike McDaniel said on Wednesday.

    McDaniel told reporters Tagovailoa’s status for Sunday’s game at the New England Patriots is uncertain and that the team is moving forward with Teddy Bridgewater as the starter.

    The 24-year-old Tagovailoa, who was diagnosed with his second concussion this season, is improving and is at the team’s practice facility on Wednesday, according to McDaniel.

    “He’s better than yesterday,” McDaniel said. “Beyond that, I feel like it’s weird to extrapolate beyond good, which is what he tells me.”

    McDaniel on Monday announced Tagovailoa was in the concussion protocol, a day after the quarterback played the entire game against the Packers. The coach could not pinpoint a moment in the game where Tagovailoa might have been injured.

    It was the second time this season the quarterback landed in the concussion protocol – the league’s policies for assessing and caring for players who sustain a concussion.

    McDaniel on Wednesday said that when he and other coaches reviewed game film on Monday they “had some questions” about Tagovailoa’s health, so the head coach urged the quarterback to see team doctors.

    Tagovailoa started the game well, throwing for 229 yards and a touchdown in the first half. It was a different story in the second half with Tagovailoa throwing interceptions on three consecutive drives to end the team’s 26-20 loss.

    “There were some things that caused us to really prod,” McDaniel told reporters Wednesday. “As a result, we felt like he needed to see medical professionals.”

    An NFL spokesperson said Wednesday the league and the NFL Players Association are reviewing “the application of the concussion protocol” in Tagovailoa’s latest case.

    “We welcome that review, and as we have done previously, we will report the results in conjunction with the NFLPA,” the NFL’s Brian McCarthy said.

    Tagovailoa was diagnosed with a concussion on September 29 after being sacked in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Tagovailoa laid motionless on the field for several minutes before he was placed on a backboard and stretcher. He missed the team’s next two games.

    That concussion came just days after Tagovailoa suffered an apparent head injury and was later allowed to continue playing in a game against the Buffalo Bills on September 25.

    Despite assurances it was actually a back injury, the NFLPA initiated a review into the handling of that case, and the union and the NFL subsequently agreed to update the concussion protocol.

    McDaniel on Wednesday was non-committal on shutting down Tagovailoa for the season even if he is cleared to play again.

    “I will do what the medical experts advise me to do, and I’m sure they’re not going to advise me in the wrong direction when it comes to his health,” McDaniel said.

    “I’m not going to go in direct conflict with what the doctors have told me to do which is to worry one day at a time. … His health is the first, foremost and only priority.”

    With a record of 8-7 and a playoff spot on the line, the Dolphins close out the season at the Patriots and then host the New York Jets on January 8.

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  • NFL players’ union terminates neurotrauma consultant involved in evaluation of Dolphins’ player concussion, reports say | CNN

    NFL players’ union terminates neurotrauma consultant involved in evaluation of Dolphins’ player concussion, reports say | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    The National Football League Players Association has terminated the unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant who was involved in the evaluation of Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for a concussion during their game against the Buffalo Bills last Sunday, according to multiple reports, including from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, citing unnamed sources.

    The unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant was terminated after it was found they made “several mistakes” in their evaluation, according to ESPN, citing an unnamed source.

    CNN has reached out to the NFLPA but did not immediately receive a response.

    The National Football League and the NFLPA released a joint statement on Saturday, saying that while the investigation into the handling of Tagovalioa’s concussion protocols remain ongoing, both sides have agreed that updates to the protocols are required.

    The NFL and NFLPA said they “anticipate changes to the protocol being made in the coming days based on what has been learned thus far in the review process.”

    On Sunday, the NFLPA told the league it would initiate a review into the handling of Tagovailoa’s apparent head injury. The NFL later confirmed to CNN that a joint investigation would take place.

    In the Dolphins’ 21-19 win over the Buffalo Bills, Tagovailoa was knocked out of the game briefly in the second quarter after a hit by Bills linebacker Matt Milano forced the back of his helmet to hit the turf. The 24-year-old third-year quarterback got up stumbling and was taken to the locker room for a concussion check. Milano was flagged for a roughing the passer penalty.

    The Dolphins initially announced Tagovailoa was questionable to return to the game with a head injury but came back out onto the field in the third quarter and finished the game throwing for 186 yards and a touchdown.

    Tagovailoa told reporters after the game that he fell onto his back before his head hit the turf causing his back to lock up and the stumbling. He added that he was evaluated for a concussion but was ultimately cleared.

    “The adrenaline kept me going,” Tagovailoa added.

    Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel alluded to a back injury after the game, saying that Tagovailoa back got “bent” on an earlier play but the hit “loosened his back” causing his legs to get wobbly. McDaniel added that Tagovailoa told him that his back was like “Gumby.”

    The NFL and Dolphins are under scrutiny for the decision to allow Tagovailoa to play another game on Thursday.

    Tagovailoa was sacked by Cincinnati Bengals defensive lineman Josh Tupou in the second quarter of that game and lay motionless on the field for several minutes. The entire Dolphins sideline walked onto the field as he was placed on a backboard and stretcher before being taken to the hospital. Bengals fans in attendance at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati showed their respect as Tagovailoa was carted off the field.

    In a statement Thursday night, the NFLPA said player health and safety were at the “core” of their mission.

    “Our concern tonight is for Tua and we hope for a full and speedy recovery,” it said. “Our investigation into the potential protocol violation is ongoing.”

    McDaniel told reporters on Friday that Tagovailoa was in concussion protocol after Thursday’s but gave no timetable for his return to the field.

    Video showed Tagovailoa’s forearms were flexed and his fingers contorted – a sign that CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, a neurosurgeon, said is a “fencing response” and can be linked to a brain injury.

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  • Two concussions don’t always add up to second impact syndrome | CNN

    Two concussions don’t always add up to second impact syndrome | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    The NFL has been thrust back into the concussion debate after Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa took two big hits just four days apart.

    This time, the debate involves whether Tagovailoa was appropriately cleared to play, with some fans concerned he was at risk of a condition called second impact syndrome.

    On Sunday, Tagovailoa left a game in the second quarter after a hit from the Buffalo Bills’ Matt Milano caused him to fall backward and hit his helmet on the turf. On his way back to the line of scrimmage, Tagovailoa stumbled and fell.

    NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport said Tagovailoa was checked for a concussion and cleared, and he came back onto the field in the third quarter.

    In a postgame news conference Sunday, Tagovailoa explained it felt as if he had hyperextended his back.

    “My back kind of locked up on me. But for the most part, I’m good. Passed whatever concussion protocol they had,” he said.

    On Thursday, Tagovailoa was back in the lineup against the Cincinnati Bengals. During the second quarter, he was sacked by defensive lineman Josh Tupou and lay motionless for several minutes before being taken off the field in a stretcher and sent to a hospital for evaluation.

    The Dolphins reported Tagovailoa was diagnosed with a concussion at the hospital but cleared to fly back home with the rest of his team. On Friday, head coach Mike McDaniel said Tagovailoa is following the NFL’s concussion protocol, with no clear timeline of when he’ll return to the field.

    A concussion is a brain injury which happens after a hit to the head causes the brain to move back and forth inside the skull. But even after the organ itself stops shaking, there can still be changes in the brain.

    Neuroscientist Julie Stamm, a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, describes it as a cascade of chemical events. “It takes time. Each of these metabolites and chemicals in the brain has a different trajectory in how they recover,” she said.

    She pointed out it can typically take 10 to 14 days after a concussion for the brain to get back to its baseline condition.

    Stamm has not treated or evaluated Tagovailoa but noted, based on what she saw of Sunday’s game against the Bills, it is very possible he had a concussion.

    “He initially grabbed his helmet and shook his head. That is a clear sign that you’re trying to shake the cobwebs,” she observed.

    Watching him fall was particularly concerning. “It didn’t look like it was his back that caused him to fall down. It looked like he just lost balance, and then his teammates are trying to hold him up.”

    The team stated it followed the concussion protocols, and Tagovailoa was cleared to return to the game.

    Later, McDaniel told reporters, “Tua went out with a lower back. He really got bent back on a quarterback sneak earlier. … His legs got wobbly because his back was loose. As he described it, his lower back was like Gumby.”

    But Stamm acknowledged even if someone doesn’t notice symptoms, they can still have a brain injury. “It’s possible that he may have felt better after, so he may not have felt like he had symptoms anymore.”

    Before Thursday’s game, social media lit up about Tagovailoa starting despite his injury from Sunday. But after Thursday’s hit, many fans began to suggest Tagovailoa may have second impact syndrome.

    “What we currently believe second impact syndrome to be is a second blow to the head or second concussion prior to the resolution of a first one. And that can result in uncontrolled swelling of the brain,” explained Steven Broglio, director of the University of Michigan’s Concussion Center. Broglio is a certified athletic trainer and is a lead author on the National Athletic Trainers’ Association position statement on management of sport concussion. He has not been involved in Tagovailoa’s care.

    Broglio said to think of your skull like a box, with your brain inside the box. In the case of second impact syndrome, the second hit compresses the box, and portions of the brain controlling vital functions like breathing and heart rate can stop working.

    Stamm said the changes happen very rapidly and can lead to permanent brain injury or even death.

    But both Broglio and Stamm stressed second impact syndrome in this sense is very rare, and happens typically among younger athletes.

    “This is a part we don’t quite understand, but it tends to be only in younger athletes; so middle school or high school,” Broglio said.

    Even if Tagovailoa had been concussed in Sunday’s game, what happened Thursday night wouldn’t be second impact syndrome in the traditional sense, Broglio emphasized. “If somebody had true brain swelling and potentially brain herniation through the bottom of the skull, he would not be getting out today.”

    But even without brain swelling, a potential second concussion could make recovery worse, Stamm added.

    “When someone has a second concussion before they’ve healed from the first one, we often see worse symptoms compared to the first one. Those symptoms can be more severe. The symptoms tend to last longer. The recovery is much slower,” she said.

    Of greatest concern to Stamm is immediately after Thursday’s hit, Tagovailoa’s hands were stiff and splayed, a posture known as the fencing response.

    “That was something that jumped out at me right away,” she recounted. “Whenever you have a posturing like that, it suggests an injury that is potentially involving the brain stem.”

    McDaniel admitted after the game “it was a scary moment. … That was an emotional moment that is not part of the deal that anyone signs up for, even though you know it’s a possibility in football to have something that you have to be taken off on a stretcher.”

    Tagovailoa issued a statement on Twitter on Friday, which read, “I’m feeling much better and focused on recovering so I can get back out on the field with my teammates.”

    The NFL Players Association is conducting an investigation into whether the Miami Dolphins violated concussion protocols in determining Tagovailoa’s readiness to play.

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  • Six US troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries following Iran-backed attacks in Syria | CNN Politics

    Six US troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries following Iran-backed attacks in Syria | CNN Politics

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    Six US service members have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries as a result of attacks from Iran-backed groups in Syria last week.

    Four US troops at the coalition base near al Hasakah that was attacked on March 23 by a suspected Iranian drone, and two service members at Mission Support Site Green Village attacked on March 24, have been identified as having brain injuries in screening since the attacks, Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said Thursday.

    “As standard procedure, all personnel in the vicinity of a blast are screened for traumatic brain injuries,” he said. “So these additional injuries were identified during post-attack medical screenings.”

    Those screenings are ongoing, he added.

    One of the service members has been transferred to Baghdad for further treatment, a US defense official familiar with the matter told CNN, noting that Baghdad has more advanced treatment options and better specialists than remaining on base in Syria.

    The other five US service members who have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries are being treated at their facilities.

    The news comes a week after the suspected Iranian drone struck a facility housing US personnel, killing an American contractor and wounding five service members. The US responded with precision air strikes on facilities associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which Ryder said Thursday killed eight militants.

    The US service members who were wounded in the attacks last week, Ryder said, “all are in stable condition.”

    Of the five injured in the original attack on March 23, one other service member is receiving treatment in Germany, while two others and a contractor are being treated in Iraq, and two have returned to duty. The service member who was injured in attacks on March 24 is also receiving medical care and is in stable condition, Ryder said.

    In 2020, more than 100 service members were diagnosed with mild traumatic brain injuries after an Iranian missile attack on the al Asad military base in Iraq. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said at the time that symptoms take time to manifest.

    “[I]t’s not an immediate thing necessarily – some cases it is, some cases it’s not,” he said. “So we continue to screen.”

    Mild traumatic brain injuries, or concussion, is one of the most common forms of TBI among service members. But TBIs can also be debilitating; veterans described symptoms of dizziness, confusion, headaches, and irritability after sustaining TBIs, as well as changes in personality and balance issues.

    On Thursday, Ryder reiterated US officials’ remarks last week that the US “will take all necessary measures to defend our troops and our interests overseas.”

    “We do not seek conflict with Iran,” he said, “but we will always protect our people.”

    This story has been updated with additional information.

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