League of Fans' Sports Forum

This might be one of the most important Sports Forum podcasts we've done, or will ever do.  Our guest is, Ann McKee, M.D., a true superstar in the field of neuropathology and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).  Dr. McKee has been named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World and one of the 50 Most Influential People in Healthcare.  She is an expert on brain trauma and its impact in the world of sports.  Dr. McKee has examined the brains of hundreds of former football players, at all levels, from high school through the NFL.  She has demonstrated that "mild" repetitive head trauma can provoke CTE, a devastating neurodegenerative disease.

In this podcast we talk about how Dr. McKee got involved with examining the brains of former football players and the mechanism by which repetitive brain trauma can turn into CTE.  She says this isn't just an NFL player issue, and explains why youth and high school football players are suffering brain damage as well.  Dr. McKee debunks the idea that there is -- or soon will be -- a high-tech football helmet that prevents, or greatly lessens, the risk of brain injuries and ultimately CTE.

Later in the episode, Dr. McKee talks about the risk of developing CTE based on how many years one plays football.  We discuss the controversial topic of whether or not public schools should be sponsoring football and end with some positive developments in detecting the presence of CTE in the living and possible treatments.