Most scientists are starting to agree that repeat, sub-concussive hits to the head are dangerous and linked to neurological disorders later in life. A new collaborative study, though, attempted to find out why – and discovered that damage to the blood-brain barrier and the resulting autoimmune response might be the culprit.
Published in journal PLOS ONE by the University of Rochester Medical Center and the Cleveland Clinic, the research suggests a new way of thinking about concussions: That the brain degeneration observed among professional football players (including the much-publicized chronic traumatic encephalopathy) could result from an out-of-control immune response, similar to what multiple sclerosis patients experience. If so, this opens the door to investigating a vaccine or drug therapy to prevent head trauma.
Although he emphasized that the research is preliminary, co-author Jeffrey J. Bazarian, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor of Emergency Medicine at URMC, said it’s exciting to discover a theory that appears to fit with the reality of what experts observe among athletes. Bazarian worked closely with lead investigator Damir Janigro, Ph.D., professor of Molecular Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic, and 67 college football players from northeast Ohio and Rochester, N.Y., who agreed to participate in the research.
“Although the awareness of sports-related concussions is much higher, we still know very little about the long-term consequences and what happens inside the brain,” Bazarian said.
“Our theory is plausible as an explanation for how routine head hits that come with playing football can lead to severe neuro-degeneration later in life,” said Bazarian, a national expert who has served on an Institute of Medicine committee for brain injury. “If others confirm this, it could present options with drugs that influence the immune response.”