When Does Boxing-Related Head Trauma Become Too Much?

Study suggests there is a point at which lasting brain damage can set in

April 18, 2012 RSS Feed Print

"That probably won't happen because the professional athletes -- they don't want to know they have a problem, as funny as that seems. That's part of the issue," Derman said.

"The big thing we can do is some kind of baseline testing on all athletes, so we can compare where they are [after a head injury] with where they were," he said. "I think X-ray and MRI scans are a larger leap, and players' associations of all the leagues would really [be opposed]."

Data and conclusions presented at medical meetings should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

More information

Learn about sports-related brain damage at Boston University's Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy.