Doctor discovers CTE in the brains of four players under 30.

Four young men who died far too young.

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HockeyFeed
Published 6 years ago
Doctor discovers CTE in the brains of four players under 30.

For several years now the consequences of injuries to the brain have been at times painfully real for fans of the National Hockey League, and now a doctor at Boston University has found what may be more evidence of the link between contact sports and CTE.

From TSN's Rick Westhead:

A researcher at Boston University says she has diagnosed chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, in the brains of four former junior hockey players.


Neuropathologist Dr. Ann McKee made the diagnoses over the past two years. Each of the four former junior players – none of whom advanced to the National Hockey League – committed suicide before the age of 30, she said.

For privacy reasons, the names and identity of the four young men could not be disclosed by Dr. Ann McKee, however Westhead received the permission of one family to share they story, and according to his report one of the young men was just 22-years-old. 

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The young man's sister said it was "bittersweet" to learn that her brother had brain damage, however she did get some comfort from McKee's discovery.

"But it was also reassuring. He told me something wasn’t right with his brain. So it was almost validation for him.”

Five former NHL players have also pledged to donate their brains for research in the hopes of preventing this kind of tragic loss of life from occurring again.

Image courtesy Stan Grossfeld/The Boston Globe/Getty Images

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