For a full description of CTE and how it relates to Alzheimer’s disease visit HERE

Thank you for your interest in helping with our research! Even if you do not qualify for DIAGNOSE CTE-II, you may be eligible to participate in other ongoing studies. We have opportunities for most people age 40+. Please contact us to determine the best fit.

If you would like to make a donation, including in memoriam, we are grateful for your generosity. Our research is funded through grants and generous gifts.

If you would like to pledge to donate your brain, please sign up using this link. We encourage individuals, with and without head trauma, to sign up. Being a brain donor is similar to being an organ donor, and the procedure is done in such a way that the donor may have an open casket if desired. BU CTE Center personnel understand that this is a difficult time for the family of the donor, and they work hard to make the donation process as easy as possible for the family.

Unfortunately, at this time there is no treatment or cure for CTE. Additionally, we are a research center, and do not provide continuing medical care. Our Resources page on our CTE Center website provides more information on CTE, clinical care, and support.

Additionally, our collaborators at the Concussion Legacy Foundation can assist if you reach out to their HelpLine. They have staff dedicated to connecting individuals with medical and community resources specific to brain injury and CTE.

Any tests or procedures performed as part of your participation in DIAGNOSE CTE-II will not incur any costs. If you live more than 60 miles from a study site, we will arrange your travel and overnight accommodations. Additionally, you will be reimbursed for eligible out-of-pocket expenses related to your visit.

Yes, a summary of most tests will be provided by zoom or telephone at no charge approximately 2-3 months after evaluation.

DIAGNOSE CTE-II is an in-person study that requires a visit to one of five study sites. The study sites are located in Boston, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Francisco and Gainesville, FL. Visit here to see more info.

Yes, your involvement is private and protected.

All data gathered in the study will be handled with maximal attention to participant confidentiality and privacy.

Your information will not have any personal identifiers when used in the study outcome.

Participants will receive results from their tests, which may offer valuable information about their brain health. You will also have access to our neurologists, neuroscientists, and other specialists in brain health.

Participants will also be compensated up to $400, depending on the tests completed during your visit.

Additionally, you will be part of a community of former football players committed to helping us advance the science and bring us closer to having the ability to diagnose CTE during life.

We believe CTE is caused by repetitive brain trauma. , or thousands of head impacts over the course of a lifetime. It is both the frequency and magnitude of hits that are important risk factors for CTE. CTE is not believed to be the result of one or even multiple concussions. Most people who have experienced a concussion make a full recovery. At this time the number or type of hits to the head needed to trigger degenerative changes of the brain is unknown. In addition, it is likely that other factors, such as genetics, may play a role in the development of CTE, as not everyone with a history of repeated brain trauma develops this disease. However, these other factors are not yet understood. For more information click here.

A concussion occurs when the brain or body gets jolted and the brain moves inside the skull with rapid acceleration and deceleration. This rapid movement of the brain results in the shearing and stretching of neurons. Such changes in cells may result in a variety of symptoms. The diagnosis of concussion currently requires a symptomatic presentation following impact or injury. Symptoms may include headaches, dizziness, nausea, and more. For more information, please see the detailed list of symptoms provided by the Concussion Legacy Foundation.

Nonconcussive impacts occur in the same manner as concussions. There is still damage to the neurons and the health of the cells. However, there are no symptoms following impact. The vacancy of symptoms provides no indication of brain injury. Therefore, diagnosis and proper treatment cannot be administered to aid in brain recovery. The threshold by which an impact results in symptoms or not is unknown. It is also unclear why some people will experience symptoms and others will not despite having the same type of head impact in terms of force.

While new initiatives of concussion policy and protocols are greatly beneficial, lack of awareness and diagnosis of nonconcussive impacts remains a substantial risk to CTE development.

Currently, CTE can only be diagnosed postmortem. Through a variety of tests in clinical care, a physician may suggest the presence of neurodegeneration, impaired regions of the brain, inflammation, and other consequences often observed in CTE. MRI scans can provide indications of these attributes but the scan itself is not a comprehensive evaluation and is not diagnostic. Often, further tests will be conducted to eliminate the presence of other causes. For example, PET scans are administered to patients suspected of Alzheimer’s to evaluate the presence of a protein called amyloid beta. The lack of this protein indicates that Alzheimer’s is unlikely the cause of symptoms. Through process of elimination, the hypothesis of CTE diagnosis could be proposed. At present, there is no way to validate this prognosis without brain biopsy. We are hopeful through this study and your help we can find a method of diagnosis capable of making a difference in the welfare of human life.

You can get more information by contacting us or clicking the links below. Click HERE to visit our Contact Us page.

Yes. A Study Partner is someone who knows you well enough to answer questions about your brain health and ability to perform day-to-day activities. For example, your Study Partner could be a friend, caregiver, family member or spouse.