Overview

• Postmortem analysis found stage II CTE lesions with possible cortical-sparing high-stage pathology, a recently described pattern.
• His parents donated his brain after he died at 43, noting years of head knocks as he continued to play football following his AFL retirement.
• The Sports Brain Bank says CTE risk correlates more with the length of time in contact sport than with the tally of diagnosed concussions.
• The bank has examined about 100 donated brains, identifying CTE in more than 40 and a cortical-sparing subtype in roughly 10 percent with greater behavioural and movement problems.
• The AFL cites rule changes to limit high contact, stronger authority for independent doctors, and a $25 million, 10-year brain-health research program as it faces a 2023 concussion class action.