Persuasive Letter To Ccee

An open letter to Roger S. Goodell, Commissioner of the National Football League, from Lester Grinspoon M.D.

I am among the millions of people who enjoy football as a spectator sport. However, I am becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the growing specter that many of these athletes will pay the price of developing Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) to a greater or lesser extent as they grow older. I believe that any change in the rules of the game which would accommodate these concerns would also diminish its popularity. I also believe that attempts to improve protective equipment can only go so far without seriously diminishing the skills and capacities of the player. Football is a violent game and every one involved in it knows that there will certainly be injuries. However, most injuries manifest themselves immediately, are orthopedic, not life-threatening, and with the help of nature and orthopedic medicine, will sooner or later heal. Injury to the brain is another matter.

However, strong as this container is, it cannot protect the contents from concussion. And most assuredly it offers no protection against the consequences of repeated concussions which can lead to the development of CTE. And unlike orthopedic injuries, the effects of this syndrome only manifest themselves over the course of years and they are always irreversible and often devastating. The piece of equipment meant to protect the head is the helmet, which is excellent at protecting the container but not the contents. Furthermore, given the limitations imposed by physics, anatomy and neurophysiology, I question whether there is any helmet design which can do much more to limit the frequency or severity of concussions. It is for this reason that I believe it is important to look for internal protection against this kind of