Study: Increased Dementia in Ex-Players

NFL Retirees Have More Memory-Related, Less Heart-Related Disease Than Population

A study commissioned by the NFL to assess the health and well-being of retired players found that they reported being diagnosed with dementia and other memory-related diseases at a rate significantly higher than that of the general population.

The study also found a greatly increased rate of arthritis being reported by the former NFL players but found reduced rates of diabetes, heart attacks and strokes.

The 37-page study was conducted by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research and its findings were based on a telephone survey of 1,063 retired NFL players conducted last November and December.

Researchers found that 6.1 percent of retired NFL players age 50 and older reported receiving a diagnosis of dementia, Alzheimer's disease or other memory-related disease, compared to 1.2 percent for all comparably aged U.S. men, and 1.9 percent of players ages 30 to 49 indicated they'd received such a diagnosis, compared to 0.1 percent for the general population.

The researchers wrote in the study that assessing rates of dementia through a phone survey can be problematic. "We did not administer cognitive tests and did not conduct neurological examinations," the researchers wrote, and concluded that "further research on this issue is warranted."

Greg Aiello, the NFL's senior vice president of public relations, said that further research by the league on the topic "already is under way," also pointing out that the issue was covered in only two paragraphs of the 37-page study and the report "acknowledges significant limitations of the survey in this area."

In a written statement, Aiello said: "Memory disorders affect many men and women who never played football or other sports. We are trying to understand it as it relates to our retired players. The survey makes no link between concussions and memory disorders. Concussion as one of many potential factors in memory disorders is being studied throughout the medical community, including our own study on the long-term effects of concussions on retired players. Meanwhile, our focus is also on the proper prevention and treatment of concussions in today's game."

The New York Times first reported the study's findings.

"The survey method is an established method to gather information," Chris Nowinski, the co-director of a Boston University medical school program that studies brain injuries in sports, said by telephone Wednesday. "I think in this situation we can believe the data. This is a major public health problem we're facing. The fact is, you've got a 19 times greater risk [for former players ages 30 to 49 to have been diagnosed with a memory-related disease]. It's frightening. . . . They've got to deal with this and they've got to deal with it in a radical manner."

Nowinski said the problem of brain injuries among football players should be addressed through rule changes, increased training on tackling techniques, streamlined practice routines with decreased contact, further research on possible equipment changes and improved care and management of players' concussions.

The study found that 41.3 percent of NFL retirees ages 30 to 49 reported suffering from arthritis, compared to 8.7 percent for the general population, and 62.4 percent of older former players reported having arthritis, compared to 32 percent of all comparably aged U.S. men.

On other health issues, former players reported faring better than the population as a whole. According to the study, NFL retirees reported fewer heart attacks and strokes than comparably aged men in the general population, and they were less likely to report angina, chest pain related to arterial blockage.

The rate of reported diabetes among former NFL players was lower than that of the entire population. Only 2.5 percent of NFL retirees 30 to 49 reported suffering from diabetes, compared to 4.7 percent for the general population; 10.5 percent of NFL retirees 50 and older reported having diabetes, compared to 17.3 percent for the general population.

Said Aiello: "The survey found that playing in the NFL was a very positive experience for most retired players and that overall they are in very good physical and financial condition. Their history of physical fitness shows up in lower rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. . . . We are carefully reviewing the information and sharing it with others to assist our work on behalf of retired players."