The Effects of Repetitive Concussion on Functional Brain Connectivity in NFL Players

Many professional football players sustain multiple concussive brain injuries during their careers, which are associated with a number of neurological impairments. Resting-state functional brain connectivity can provide insight into how concussions may mechanistically drive such impairments. To assess resting-state connectivity in players retired from the National Football League (NFL), this study used blood oxygen level dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD fMRI) for the examination of three brain networks (i.e., the default mode network, the frontoparietal network, and the salience network) implicated in cognitive control. Functional connectivity values within and between these networks were then correlated with number of concussions to determine whether repeated concussive injuries lead to dose-dependent alterations of the connectivity of these networks. This study found no significant relationship between number of lifetime concussions sustained by a player and functional connectivity within or between any of the three networks examined. Future studies could use more complex measures of aggregate head injury to provide further insight into the neurological damage experienced by football players.