The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon
Introduction: Despite changes in regulations, boxing-related injuries and fatalities are still occurring. The numbers available in the literature regarding mortality and long-term consequences may not accurately represent the actual situation. Indeed, the real extent of this phenomenon remains poorl...
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Elsevier
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Brain and Spine |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772529423010317 |
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| author | Michele Da Broi Abdullah Al Awadhi Philippe Voruz Aria Nouri Karl Schaller |
| author_facet | Michele Da Broi Abdullah Al Awadhi Philippe Voruz Aria Nouri Karl Schaller |
| author_sort | Michele Da Broi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction: Despite changes in regulations, boxing-related injuries and fatalities are still occurring. The numbers available in the literature regarding mortality and long-term consequences may not accurately represent the actual situation. Indeed, the real extent of this phenomenon remains poorly known. Research question: Delineating the spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of boxing-related traumatic brain injuries (TBI). Material and methods: Narrative review of the literature concerning acute and chronic boxing-related TBI. Keywords such as mortality, boxing, subdural hematoma were used to search in PubMed and Google scholar. An updated analysis of the Velazquez fatalities collection in boxing was undertaken. Results: The Velazquez collection includes 2076 fatalities from 1720 to the present with a death rate of 10 athletes per year. More than half of the deaths (N = 1354, 65.2%) occurred after a knock-out, and nearly 75% happened during professional bouts. In Australia, from 1832 to 2020, 163 fatalities were recorded (75% professional). In Japan, from 1952 to 2016, 38 deaths were recorded with a mean age of 23.9 years. Up to 40% of retired professional boxers in the United States were diagnosed with symptoms of chronic brain injury. Clinical dementia is far more prevalent among professional boxers than in amateurs with an incidence of 20%. Discussion and conclusions: A concerted effort to raise awareness and shed light on boxing-related neuro-trauma is required. Similar considerations can be made for other combat sports or contact sports. A call to action to address this knowledge gap, decrease and prevent this phenomenon is advocated. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c9dd49e4737e49f7b4fc45652d5b2d27 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2772-5294 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
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| series | Brain and Spine |
| spelling | doaj-art-c9dd49e4737e49f7b4fc45652d5b2d272025-08-20T01:56:24ZengElsevierBrain and Spine2772-52942024-01-01410274310.1016/j.bas.2023.102743The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenonMichele Da Broi0Abdullah Al Awadhi1Philippe Voruz2Aria Nouri3Karl Schaller4Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland; Corresponding author.Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandDivision of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland; Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology, University of Geneva, SwitzerlandDivision of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, SwitzerlandDivision of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland; Department of Neuroscience, University of Geneva, Geneva, SwitzerlandIntroduction: Despite changes in regulations, boxing-related injuries and fatalities are still occurring. The numbers available in the literature regarding mortality and long-term consequences may not accurately represent the actual situation. Indeed, the real extent of this phenomenon remains poorly known. Research question: Delineating the spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of boxing-related traumatic brain injuries (TBI). Material and methods: Narrative review of the literature concerning acute and chronic boxing-related TBI. Keywords such as mortality, boxing, subdural hematoma were used to search in PubMed and Google scholar. An updated analysis of the Velazquez fatalities collection in boxing was undertaken. Results: The Velazquez collection includes 2076 fatalities from 1720 to the present with a death rate of 10 athletes per year. More than half of the deaths (N = 1354, 65.2%) occurred after a knock-out, and nearly 75% happened during professional bouts. In Australia, from 1832 to 2020, 163 fatalities were recorded (75% professional). In Japan, from 1952 to 2016, 38 deaths were recorded with a mean age of 23.9 years. Up to 40% of retired professional boxers in the United States were diagnosed with symptoms of chronic brain injury. Clinical dementia is far more prevalent among professional boxers than in amateurs with an incidence of 20%. Discussion and conclusions: A concerted effort to raise awareness and shed light on boxing-related neuro-trauma is required. Similar considerations can be made for other combat sports or contact sports. A call to action to address this knowledge gap, decrease and prevent this phenomenon is advocated.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772529423010317BoxingTraumatic brain injuryCerebral hemorrhageAcute subdural hematomaDementia pugilisticaMortality |
| spellingShingle | Michele Da Broi Abdullah Al Awadhi Philippe Voruz Aria Nouri Karl Schaller The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon Brain and Spine Boxing Traumatic brain injury Cerebral hemorrhage Acute subdural hematoma Dementia pugilistica Mortality |
| title | The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon |
| title_full | The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon |
| title_fullStr | The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon |
| title_full_unstemmed | The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon |
| title_short | The spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing – A call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon |
| title_sort | spectrum of acute and chronic consequences of neurotrauma in professional and amateur boxing a call to action is advocated to better understand and prevent this phenomenon |
| topic | Boxing Traumatic brain injury Cerebral hemorrhage Acute subdural hematoma Dementia pugilistica Mortality |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772529423010317 |
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