New Traumatic Brain Research On Brains

Muhammad Ali, the famous boxer is well known for his Olympic gold medal

, three world titles, 56 matches and place in the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Currently, the famous boxer is fighting for a different reason. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 1982, a progressive neurological condition that slowly removes an individual's coordination and movement. Ali is used to headlines, however his diagnosis has helped ensure his placement as a household name. While he can no longer speak due to the Parkinson's, he still makes the occasional public appearance raising awareness for the condition which affects thousands in the United States alone.

Last February, actors, athletes and musicians came together to celebrate Ali's birthday and raise money to research the link between boxing and the potential for brain disease. Proceeds from the event, the Power of Love Gala, benefited the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Ky. and the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.

The Lou Ruvo Center is studying the effects of repeat blows to the head that may occur in professional sports, primarily boxing. The study wants to answer the questions: why do some athletes suffer brain damage from blows to the head and how can scientists and others protect future participants from reaching the same fate?

According to previous research, 20 to 25 percent of professional athletes may develop neurological conditions such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's, oftentimes earlier than the rest of the population. This comes to no surprise as 70 percent of boxing injuries occur to the head. Ali estimates that he took close to 30,000 punches above the neck during his twenty-year career. Many of the matches he fought, he fought without protective gear.

Dr. Charles Bernick, associate medical director at the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health and principle investigator on the Cleveland Clinic study explains, "It has been known for decades in the boxing community that recurrent blows to the head can result in permanent brain damage. Many notable fighters" -- including Freddie Roach, Sugar Ray Leonard, and Jerry Quarry -- "have developed neurological conditions at a young age."

Joining forces with the Nevada Athletic Commission, Golden Boy Promotions, Top Rank Boxing, and the UFC, Bernick and his team are tracking real-time brain changes in professional fighters. Participants will undergo annual MRI scans, neurological exams and cognitive assessments.

Bernick advises that even though the results are preliminary, they are very promising.

"We have a number of interesting findings already, and we're not even a year into the study," he said. "We can tell that those that have had more fights over their career actually are [experiencing] changes, disruptions injury to certain areas of the brain. The volume of the brain is shrinking, and the fibers that cross the brain are starting to dissipate or be injured."

Ali will likely not benefit from any results of this study, but his family does take comfort in knowing that others will be helped.

by: Katie Kelley

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