Under the program, called The Trust, Cleveland Clinic will host players at three sites: its main campus in Cleveland, its campus in Weston, Fla., and the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas.
Players who participate in the program will receive a brain scan, cognitive evaluations, psychological interviews and balance assessments, in addition to a range of other health services. The retired players will then receive personalized short- and long-term treatment plans to relieve symptoms, improve cognitive abilities and slow neurodegeneration for those who have sustained recurrent head trauma.
“Athletic injuries and sports-related brain trauma have become part of the public consciousness and are being viewed as legitimate public health problems,” Jay Alberts, PhD, director of the Cleveland Clinic Concussion Center, said in a news release. “Former professional football players, in particular, are at increased risk for neurological disease. The goal of this program is to identify potential problems – physical, neurological or cognitive – earlier, which may lead to earlier interventions and treatments.”
The effort is one of Cleveland Clinic’s latest to promote football players’ brain health and safety. It has researched designs for better youth football helmets in partnership with the NFL and designed a blood test to assess concussions, among other contributions.
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