Concussions Linked to Alzheimer's Risk Decades Later

As if suffering a concussion isn't bad enough, this new study published in the journal Neurology links concussions to development of Alzheimer's Dementia decades later. The study is pretty technical, although USA Today wrote an easier to understand article about the study accessible here. In the study, PET scans could not even tell the difference between who had suffered a concussion and who had not, suggesting a normal PET scan offers little to no reassurance after a concussion that "everything is okay."
I hope this article makes it more clear than ever that we need to take head injuries very seriously. The term "mild traumatic brain injury" a.k.a. mTBI is in some ways misleading, as "mild" suggests little possibility of future problems from suffering such an injury.
I believe the bottom line from this study is this: parents, please make sure your kids wear helmets when riding bikes, skateboards, etc. Our brains make us who we are and we must take care of them!
-Dr. Tim