New Model Sheds Light on Traumatic Brain Injuries in Sports

Sports-related brain injuries are a huge issue in football and other high-contact sports. Now, a new study has provided some insight into the behavioral damage caused by repeated blows to the head. The findings could allow researchers to potentially develop new ways to detect these injuries.

In recent years, there's been a great deal of discussion about concussions in sports injuries. It shouldn't be surprising that this is a topic of concern; an estimated 3.8 million sports-related concussions occur every year. In addition, mild traumatic brain injury is becoming more common in military personnel deployed in combat zones.

One of the issues when it comes to treating mild, repetitive traumatic brain injury (TBI) and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is that no model for the disease exists. In this case, though, researchers created a mouse model in order to better examine the disease.

"This new model captures both the clinical aspects of repetitive mild TBI and CTE," said Anthony L. Petraglia, one of the researchers, in a news release. "While public awareness of the long-term health risk of blows to the head is growing rapidly, our ability to scientifically study the fundamental neurological impact of mild brain injuries has lagged."

The researchers examined mice with TBI in a series of task. In the end, they found that the mice develop many of the same behavioral problems associated with TBI in humans; these symptoms include difficulty sleeping, memory problems, depression, and judgment and risk-taking issues.

"These results resemble the spectrum of neuro-behavioral problems that have been reported and observed in individuals who have sustained multiple mild TBI and those who were subsequently diagnosed with CTE, including behaviors such as poor judgment, risk taking, and depression," said Petraglia in a news release.

The findings serve as a good starting point for further investigating TBI. More specifically, the scientists hope to use this model for controlled, mechanistic analysis of repetitive mild TBI and CTE.

The findings are published in the Journal of Neurotrauma.