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Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDSports medicine - open

When Athletes Ask About Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.

  • Shae Datta1,2
  • Brian S Im2,3
  • Geraldine Pagnotta2,3
  • Mara Sproul2,3
  • Rebecca D Folkerth4
  • Enna Selmanovic5,6,7
  • Hector Arciniega8,9,10
10 affiliations
  1. 1Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
  2. 2NYU Langone Concussion Center, NYU Langone Health, 240 East 38th Street, 17th Floor, New York, NY, 10016, USA.
  3. 3Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
  4. 4Brain Injury Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
  5. 5Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
  6. 6Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
  7. 7Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
  8. 8NYU Langone Concussion Center, NYU Langone Health, 240 East 38th Street, 17th Floor, New York, NY, 10016, USA. [email protected].
  9. 9Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA. [email protected].
  10. 10Institute for Translational Neuroscience, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA. [email protected].
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Abstract

Athletes exposed to repetitive head impacts (RHI) may seek clinical evaluation because of concerns about chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a neuropathologically defined disease that cannot currently be diagnosed during life. As public awareness of CTE has expanded, clinicians face challenges communicating diagnostic uncertainty, interpreting non-specific symptoms, and addressing concerns about future neurological health. This Current Opinion examines the widening gap between public expectations and scientific capability and considers its implications for athlete-centered care. We discuss how clinicians can acknowledge uncertainty without dismissing patients' concerns, identify potentially treatable contributors to symptoms without prematurely attributing them to neurodegenerative disease, and use shared decision-making to guide individualized evaluation and management. We also consider how concerns about CTE may influence decisions about continued participation and return-to-sport among current athletes. Meeting these challenges requires coordinated interdisciplinary care, evidence-based communication, and clinical approaches that prioritize meaningful intervention even when diagnostic certainty remains unavailable.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{datta2026when,
  title = {{When Athletes Ask About Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.}},
  author = {Shae Datta and Brian S Im and Geraldine Pagnotta and Mara Sproul and Rebecca D Folkerth and Enna Selmanovic and Hector Arciniega},
  journal = {Sports medicine - open},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1186/s40798-026-01138-2},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42963510},
  note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - When Athletes Ask About Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy.
AU  - Shae Datta
AU  - Brian S Im
AU  - Geraldine Pagnotta
AU  - Mara Sproul
AU  - Rebecca D Folkerth
AU  - Enna Selmanovic
AU  - Hector Arciniega
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/30
JO  - Sports medicine - open
DO  - 10.1186/s40798-026-01138-2
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42963510
AB  - Athletes exposed to repetitive head impacts (RHI) may seek clinical evaluation because of concerns about chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a neuropathologically defined disease that cannot currently be diagnosed during life. As public awareness of CTE has expanded, clinicians face challenges communicating diagnostic uncertainty, interpreting non-specific symptoms, and addressing concerns about future neurological health. This Current Opinion examines the widening gap between public expectations and scientific capability and considers its implications for athlete-centered care. We discuss how clinicians can acknowledge uncertainty without dismissing patients' concerns, identify potentially treatable contributors to symptoms without prematurely attributing them to neurodegenerative disease, and use shared decision-making to guide individualized evaluation and management. We also consider how concerns about CTE may influence decisions about continued participation and return-to-sport among current athletes. Meeting these challenges requires coordinated interdisciplinary care, evidence-based communication, and clinical approaches that prioritize meaningful intervention even when diagnostic certainty remains unavailable.
SN  - 2199-1170
SN  - 2198-9761
ER  -