CTE: What we know about chronic traumatic encephalopathy

DW (English)

Erich Grau helped pioneer American football in Germany. Now he probably suffers from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE. The neurodegenerative condition is linked to repeated blows to the head. His brain is damaged beyond repair.

Transcript

00:00Erich Grau helped pioneer American football in Germany, and he's paid a price.

00:07The former teacher likely suffers from CTE, a disease linked to repeated blows to the

00:13head.

00:14His brain is damaged beyond repair.

00:17It's a miserable life.

00:19Everything goes wrong.

00:21That's why people kill themselves.

00:23That's why people kill other people.

00:26Everything shrinks.

00:28You are not a person anymore.

00:31Several of Grau's former teammates died with CTE symptoms.

00:35Scientists don't yet understand the exact mechanisms that lead to the brain dysfunction

00:40associated with CTE.

00:43But they believe the risk of developing the condition is likely to increase with repetitive

00:47head impacts sustained over longer periods of time.

00:51If you bump your head once on the door, it's likely not happening.

00:57Everyone who engages in contact or combat sports, such as boxing, American football,

01:03or soccer, anyone who hits their head on a regular basis is at risk of developing CTE.

01:12Grau first developed symptoms around 2000, when he started to suffer headaches that lingered

01:19for months on end.

01:21To be able to teach, I had about 10 aspirin by the time of 11 o'clock.

01:29They lasted until at 1 o'clock the school was over.

01:34And that's where I thought, there must be something wrong.

01:39Before long, the former American football player began having difficulties remembering

01:43things like names.

01:45He was eventually forced into retirement at 54.

01:50CTE is a neurodegenerative condition associated with repeated blows to the head.

01:56Even lighter blows can damage what are called microtubules, which are important for the

02:01structure in brain cells.

02:03During this process, tau proteins are released.

02:06They usually stabilize the microtubules.

02:09These tau proteins aggregate and clump together, having an impact on brain function.

02:15The most common symptoms are memory loss, changes in personality, depression, and mood

02:20swings.

02:24Unlike concussions, repetitive head impacts don't cause acute symptoms, so no one knows

02:29how long it takes for the brain to recover from them.

02:33This poses a major challenge, both in research and in care.

02:38It is very likely that we at some point are going to compare this to smoking cigarettes.

02:44We don't know how many cigarettes it takes to develop cancer, but we know that they're

02:48not good for your health.

02:50And this is why medical scientists advise to not smoke full stop.

02:56More than 300 former National Football League players have been posthumously diagnosed with

03:01CTE.

03:03The real number of sufferers is likely far higher.

03:07At present, an official diagnosis is only possible after an autopsy.

03:12But researchers are now working on ways to determine whether someone is developing CTE

03:18while they're still alive.

03:20Many things about the condition remain mysterious.

03:23Are there risk factors or a predisposition for it?

03:27Could individually tailored treatments one day help sufferers?

03:31Treating the disease at the moment only involves addressing the symptoms it causes.

03:37We do know that every factor that helps the brain to stay healthy and functioning may

03:44also be preventive here in CTE.

03:46So that means being sportive, you know, working out, keeping your BMI in check, making sure

03:55that you don't develop diabetes.

03:58Awareness of the dangers of CTE among players, coaches and even doctors remains limited.

04:05American football wreaked havoc on Erich Grau's health and that of his former teammates.

04:11But his family, workouts and coping strategies have helped him keep his life from spinning

04:16out of control.

04:18For people with CTE it's very important to control their lives mentally and physically

04:26because if the bowling ball rolls to the right or to the left, that might end their

04:32life.

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