Table 2B.
Demographic, American Football Exposure and Neuropathological Characteristics of 266 Players Stratified by Brain Bank
| Characteristic | VA‐BU‐CLF pre‐2014 (%) (n = 91) | VA‐BU‐CLF 2014‐2017 (%) (n = 164) | FHS (%) (n = 11) | All (%) (n = 266) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highest level of play | ||||
| Youth | 2 (2%) | 2 (1%) | 1 (9%) | 5 (2%) |
| High school | 16 (18%) | 12 (7%) | 6 (55%) | 34 (13%) |
| College | 20 (22%) | 57 (35%) | 4 (36%) | 81 (30%) |
| Semi‐Professional | 4 (4%) | 6 (4%) | 0 | 10 (4%) |
| Professional (NFL, CFL) | 49 (54%) | 87 (53%) | 0 | 136 (51%) |
| Primary position at highest level of play | ||||
| Offensive Lineman | 20 (21%) | 34 (21%) | 3 (27%) | 57 (21%) |
| Defensive Lineman | 20 (21%) | 32 (20%) | 0 | 52 (20%) |
| Running Back | 8 (9%) | 31 (19%) | 3 (27%) | 42 (16%) |
| Linebacker | 11 (12%) | 19 (12%) | 0 | 30 (11%) |
| Defensive Back | 14 (15%) | 21 (13%) | 0 | 35 (13%) |
| Quarterback | 5 (6%) | 13 (7%) | 2 (18%) | 20 (8%) |
| Tight End | 6 (7%) | 7 (4%) | 1 (9%) | 14 (5%) |
| Wide Receiver | 3 (4%) | 2 (1%) | 0 | 5 (2%) |
| Kicker or Puntera | 1 (1%) | 1 (1%) | 0 | 2 (1%) |
| Unknown/Unreported | 3 (4%) | 4 (2%) | 2 (18%) | 9 (3%) |
| Military veterans | 19 (21%) | 47 (29%) | 8 (73%) | 74 (28%) |
| Other contact sport play | 20 (22%) | 36 (22%) | 3 (27%) | 59 (22%) |
| Neuropathology | ||||
| Alzheimer's disease | 10 (11%) | 22 (13%) | 4 (36%) | 36 (14%) |
| Lewy body disease | 15 (17%) | 29 (18%) | 5 (45%) | 49 (18%) |
| Frontotemporal lobar degeneration | 10 (11%) | 15 (9%) | 1 (9%) | 26 (10%) |
| Motor neuron disease | 9 (10%) | 5 (3%) | 1 (9%) | 15 (6%) |
a
Both players played other positions, but kicker/punter was the primary position.
CFL = Canadian Football League; NFL = National Football League.