CTE is characterized by a distinctive pattern of tau protein accumulation identified on postmortem neuropathological examination. It has been associated with repetitive head impacts in contact sports and military service.
No validated method exists for diagnosing it in living individuals.
Alternative Names:
CTE, Traumatic Encephalopathy
Why it Matters?
The postmortem diagnostic requirement is dispositive in most litigation contexts, since a living plaintiff cannot establish the diagnosis by any accepted method. Claims asserting CTE in living individuals rest on symptom patterns and imaging that the scientific consensus does not accept as diagnostic. The relationship between impact exposure and disease also remains contested, including whether a dose-response relationship has been established.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
Can CTE be diagnosed in a living person?
Is the causal relationship established?
