Repetitive soccer ball ’heading’ may lead to brain injury

In the past decade, concern has been raised surrounding concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries sustained by football players and military personnel, as more and more studies have indicated that these injuries may have a lasting impact on cognition and memory. And now, another kind of athlete could potentially be at risk for similar types of brain abnormalities: Soccer players. Utilizing advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques, researchers from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City found that numerous repetitions of the soccer move known as ‘heading,’ are associated with adverse brain changes comparable to those found in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI).