Dallas Cowboys football player Marshawn Kneeland was suffering from stage 1 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) when he died by suicide last year, scientists said.
Researchers at Boston University's CTE Center made the diagnosis through a postmortem brain tissue ***** ysis of the defensive lineman, who died aged 24.
"Unfortunately, I was not surprised to find CTE in the brain of Mr Kneeland, because we have found this progressive brain disease in nearly half of the athletes we've studied who have died before the age of 30," said the centre's director, Dr Ann McKee.
Stage 1 is the mildest of CTE's four stages, where headaches and loss of attention or concentration are common symptoms.
In a statement, Kneeland's family said the diagnosis provided "important context" about some of the struggles he was facing.
Researchers at Boston University's CTE Center made the diagnosis through a postmortem brain tissue ***** ysis of the defensive lineman, who died aged 24.
"Unfortunately, I was not surprised to find CTE in the brain of Mr Kneeland, because we have found this progressive brain disease in nearly half of the athletes we've studied who have died before the age of 30," said the centre's director, Dr Ann McKee.
Stage 1 is the mildest of CTE's four stages, where headaches and loss of attention or concentration are common symptoms.
In a statement, Kneeland's family said the diagnosis provided "important context" about some of the struggles he was facing.
24 days ago
