Alleged Attacker Of Giants’ Fan, Who Sustained Brain Damage, Is Apprehended

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Posted on 30th May 2011 by Gordon Johnson in Brain Injury

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Sometimes, it looks like justice has a chance of prevailing. I hope this is so in the case of Bryan Stow.

Stow, in case you don’t remember, is a San Francisco Giants fan who was brutally beaten at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Stow sustained brain damage in the March 31 incident, where he was attacked by two men in the stadium parking lot following the Dodgers’ opening day win against the Giants.

Stow had committed the offense of wearing Giants’ clothing to to the game.

Earlier this month one of the two men who allegedly attacked Stow, who was hit in the head and punched and kicked when he was on the ground, was apprehended in an East Hollywood apartment.     

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-bryan-stow-arrest-20110523,0,5494774.story

In the meantime, Stow is in critical condition at San Francisco General Hospital. He has opened his eyes but doctors said “that his long-term recovery was far from certain,” according to The Los Angeles Times. 

Here’s hoping Stow recovers, and that both his attackers wind up being arrested and convicted.    

Derek Boogaard, Benched By A Concussion, Died Of Fatal Drug, Alcohol Mix

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Posted on 30th May 2011 by Gordon Johnson in Brain Injury

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New York Rangers enforcer Derek Boogaard, who was put out of commission in December after suffering a concussion, died of an accidental overdose of the pain killer oxycodone and alcohol, according to authorities.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/21/sports/hockey/boogaard-died-from-mix-of-alcohol-and-oxycodone.html?_r=1&ref=sports

Boogaard, a feared player, was discovered dead in his Minneapolis apartment May 13. He was 28.

His family released a statement after the toxicology report was released on Boogaard, who had been in substance abuse rehab program that the National Hockey League and the players’ union run.

“We are deeply saddened by this unimaginable loss, but we are grateful for the expression of support that has given us strength as we go through this tragic time,” his family said. “After repeated courageous attempts at rehabilitation and with the full support of the New York Rangers, the NHIPA, and the NHL, Derek had been showing tremendous improvement but was ultimately unable to beat this opponent.”

Boogaard sustained three major concussions during his NHL career, and his family donated his brain to the Boston University School of Medicine, which will examine it to see if he was suffering from a degenerative disease linked to head injuries.

Such brain disease often leads to depression, a factor that certainly would have made it harder for Boogaard to kick his drug habit.       

 

 

New York Ranger Derek Boogaard’s Autopsy Results Will Take Several Weeks

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Posted on 15th May 2011 by Gordon Johnson in Brain Injury

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Unfortunately, it looks like it will some time before we find out the cause of death for New York Rangers hockey player Derek Boogaard, 28, who was found dead in his Minneapolis apartment Friday.

On Saturday the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office conducted an autopsy on Boogaard, a fierce and feared hockey enforcer who sat out most of the season due to a concussion. But the autopsy results won’t be released until several weeks, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner told the Associated Press.  

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/nhl/2011-05-13-derek-boogaard-dies_N.htm#

The player’s agent also told AP that he didn’t have any explanation regarding Boogaard’s demise.

The question most people will want answered is to what extent the concussion that Boogaard suffered during a fight in early December, which has kept him on the bench ever since, contributed to his death, directly or indirectly. Several athletes, including former Chicago Bears player Dave Duerson, who sustained concussions during their careers have committed suicide.    

At this point, one can’t draw any conclusion’s about Boogaard’s death. Authorities have said there was no evidence of foul play. And the huge player apparently has a history of substance abuse, which could have played into his death.

His family is donating his brain to Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy, which is performing tests on the brains of deceased National Football League players, The Star Tribune reported Saturday.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/wild/121840164.html

“Derek loved sports and obviously in particular hockey, so we believe Derek would have liked to assist with research on a matter that had affected him later on in his career,” Ryan Boogaard, Derek’s younger brother, told The Star Tribune.

Ryan and Boogaard’s other brother, Aaron, are the ones who discovered Derek unconscious shortly after 6 p.m. Friday. Derek subsequently died.

Boogaard suffered a number of concussions during his career, but his final one was particularly bad. In March he complained about staying in his apartment for three weeks at one because of the impact of the concussion. 

The New York Times weighed in on Boogaard’s concussion woes Sunday.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/sports/hockey/rangers-enforcer-boogaard-is-found-dead-at-his-minneapolis-apartment.html?ref=sports

But Boogaard apparently also had some demons. He enrolled in an NHL substance abuse program while with the Rangers. And when he was playing with the Minnesota Wilds, he was secretly in that program for several weeks, while publicly saying he was out with  a concussion.

“The news that we have lost someone so young and so strong leaves everyone in the National Hockey League stunned and saddened,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. “The NHL family sends its deepest condolences to all who knew and loved Derek Boogaard, to those who played and worked with him and to everyone who enjoyed watching him compete.”

New York Rangers Player, Convalescencing After A Concussion, Found Dead

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Posted on 14th May 2011 by Gordon Johnson in Brain Injury

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Was New York Rangers hocky player Derek Boogaard’s death in any way linked to the concussion he sustained in December? 

You can bet that’s the question that’s in everyone’s mind after the news broke Friday that the 28-year-old was found dead in his Minneapolis apartment. An autopsy was set for today, Saturday.

The New York Times Saturday characterized Boogaard as “one of the toughest fighters in the NHL.” When he joined the Rangers, he was quoted as saying, “I am not afraid to do what I do.” Maybe he should have been.    

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/14/sports/hockey/rangers-player-is-found-dead-in-his-home.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper

At 6-feet-7 and 265 pounds, Boogaard was built for the brutal game of hockey. He joined the Rangers last summer, after signing a $6.5 million contract, after playing for the Minnesota Wild.

According to The Times, Boogaard was involved in seven fights this season, and the last one, “the 70th of his NHL career,” resulting in a serious concussion. That took place Dec. 9 in a scrap with the Senators’ Matt Carkner.

Boogaard had been not been able to play since that fight, and he had been convalescing in Minnesota. He had complained to The Star-Tribune of Minneapolis that he had to wear sunglasses when he went outdoors because the sun bothered his eyes.

So why did he die? Did the concussions he suffered during his career, particularly the horrendous one last December, play a part in his death? Was he depressed after not being able to play most of the season?

Hopefully, we’ll have an answer soon. 

    

Tragically, Ex-Chicago Bear Dave Duerson Was Right: He Had Brain Disease

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Posted on 4th May 2011 by Gordon Johnson in Brain Injury

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It shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone this week when researchers announced the findings of their examination of the brain tissue of ex-Chicago Bears star Dave Duerson: He had chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/sports/football/03duerson.html?ref=sports

CTE, as it is known, is the mentally debilitating disease that’s been found in the brains of nearly two dozen deceased National Football League players. It is caused by repeated trauma to the brain, and its symptoms include depression and memory loss.

As it turns out, Duerson had actually correctly diagnosed CTE in himself. Then he took a took a gun and committed suicide by shooting himself in the chest.

He chose the chest, rather than the head, so that his brain would remain intact. He wanted it to be tested at Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy, which has been testing donated brain tissue from deceased pro-football players.   

According to The Times, Duerson, who was 50 when he took his life, in a suicide note wrote, “Please, see that my brain is given to the NFL’s brain bank.”

His last wish was granted. And at a press conference Monday, the center in Boston announced its findings on Duerson’s brain, the CTE diagnosis.

“It’s tragic that Dave Duerson took his own life, but it’s very meaningful that he recognized the symptoms of the disorder — it validates the condition,”  said Dr. Ann McKee, who was quoted by The New York Times.

Validates it indeed.

The NFL for years denied there was any link between the concussions that players repeatedly sustain and permanent brain damage. If it had taken responsibility, and taken measures to protect players, perhaps Duerson would be alive today. 

Duerson, who played college ball at Notre Dame, had four children with his ex-wife Alicia. They were all at the press conference.   

His 25-year-old son Tregg said he hoped that the research being conducted now would help save everyone from Pop Warner to NFL players from the same fate as his father.

Tregg also said he hoped his father had not died in vain. So do I.    

Official Results On Ex-Chicago Bear David Duerson’s Brain To Be Released

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Posted on 1st May 2011 by Gordon Johnson in Brain Injury

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Researchers are slated to release autopsy results Monday for ex-Chicago Bear Dave Duerson, who committed suicide by shooting himself in the chest rather than the head so his brain could be studied for disease from football-related injuries, according to The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/02/sports/football/02duerson.html?ref=sports

 There will be a press conference at the Boston University School of Medicine, where members of the school’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy and Duerson’s ex-wife Alicia will be present.

So far roughly two dozen former National Football League players have been determined to have had chronic trauamatic encephalopathy (CTE), a disease caused by repetitive brain injury –  the kind you get by playing football.

Duerson, 50, believed that he was suffering CTE, which can cause depression, memory loss and dementia.

Here’s a twist in Duerson’s case, which The Times astutely pointed out.

Duerson had been on a panel since 2006 that weighed disability claims by ex-NFL players. That board has been reluctant to award benefits to former players for things such as neurological damage, according to The Times, which also noted that Duerson once told a Senate subcommittee that he had doubts about players’ mental problems stemming from football.