This exposure can depend on the total number of fights, number of knockout losses, the duration of career, fight frequency, age of retirement, and boxing style. Diagnosis
Diagnosis of CTE cannot be made in living individuals; a clear diagnosis is only possible during an autopsy. Though there are signs and symptoms some researchers associate with CTE, there is no definitive test to prove the existence in a living person. Signs are also very similar to that of other neurological conditions such as Alzheimers.The lack of distinct biomarkers is the reason CTE cannot typically be diagnosed while a person is alive. Concussions are non-structural injuries and do not result in brain bleeding, which is why most concussions cannot be seen on routine neuroimaging tests such as CT or MRI. Acute concussion symptoms (those that occur shortly after an injury) should not be confused with CTE. Differentiating between prolonged post-concussion syndrome (PCS, where symptoms begin shortly after a concussion and last for weeks, months, and sometimes even years) and CTE symptoms can be difficult. Research studies are examining whether neuroimaging can detect subtle changes in axonal integrity and structural lesions that can occur in CTE. Recently, more progress in in-vivo diagnostic techniques for CTE has been made, using DTI, fMRI, MRI, and MRS imaging; however, more research needs to be done before any such techniques can be validated.PET tracers that bind specifically to tau protein are desired to aid diagnosis of CTE in living individuals.
His autopsy revealed he was in very advanced stages of CTE with his brain being said to resemble that of an 87-year-old with advanced Alzheimers. In 2008, the Sports Legacy Institute joined with the Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) to form the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (now the BU CTE Center). Brain Injury Research Institute (BIRI) also studies the impact of concussions.In 2014, Patrick Grange of Albuquerque was the first US soccer player with CTE at autopsy. He was well known for his heading and had died in 2012.On April 7, 2021, former National Football League player Phillip Adams was found to have shot and killed six people, before killing himself a day later. A subsequent autopsy revealed at that the time of the shooting, Adams had an "unusually severe" case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Research
In 2005, forensic pathologist Bennet Omalu, along with colleagues in the Department of Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh, published a paper, "Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in a National Football League Player", in the journal Neurosurgery, based on analysis of the brain of deceased former NFL center Mike Webster.