BACKGROUND Neuropathology and surveys of retired National Football League (NFL) players suggest that chronic brain damage is a frequent result of a career in football. There is limited information on the neurological statuses of living retired players. This study aimed to fill the gap in knowledge by conducting in-depth neurological examinations of 30- to 60-year-old retired NFL players. HYPO...

BACKGROUND Recent research showed 82% of 233 retired National Football League players under age 50 had abnormal narrowing and blockages in arteries compared to the general population of the same age. It has been suggested that early screening and intervention in this at-risk population be a priority. HYPOTHESIS Omega-3 essential fatty acid has been shown to improve cardiovascular lipid risk f...

OBJECTIVES This study describes the characteristics of injuries and high risk situations in the Norwegian professional football league during one competitive season using Football Incident Analysis (FIA), a video based method. METHODS Videotapes and injury information were collected prospectively for 174 of 182 (96%) regular league matches during the 2000 season. Incidents where the match was...

BACKGROUND Scientific studies on the prevalence of mental health problems in elite athletes are rare, and most have had considerable methodological limitations, such as low response rate and heterogeneous samples. AIMS To evaluate the prevalence of depression and anxiety in top-level football players in comparison to the general population, and to analyse potential risk factors. METHODS Pla...

OBJECTIVE To review acute spinal cord injuries (ASCIs) in all Australian codes of football (rugby union [RU], rugby league [RL], Australian Rules football [ARF] and soccer) for 1997-2002 and to compare data with those of a 1986-1996 survey. DESIGN Retrospective review of hospital records, and structured interviews with injured players. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING Patients admitted to any of th...

OBJECTIVE To examine the incidence and characteristics of concussions for one season in the Canadian Football League (CFL). DESIGN Retrospective survey. PARTICIPANTS 289 players reporting to CFL training camp. Of these, 154 players had played in the CFL during the 1997 season. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Based on self-reported symptoms, calculations were made to determine the number of concussi...

The purpose of this study was to analyse the anger expression styles, the continuous anger and personality types of players who play football in the professional league. The research group consisted of 133 soccer players who are playing in sports teams in the Turkish Super League: Ankara Sport Club, Gençlerbirliği Sports Club and Hacettepe Sports Club in the first league, Turk Telekom sports in...

BACKGROUND Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is a severe event for a footballer, but it is unclear if the knee injury rate is higher on returning to football after ACL injury. OBJECTIVE To study the risk of knee injury in elite footballers with a history of ACL injury compared with those without. METHOD The Swedish male professional league (310 players) was studied during 2001. Player...