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Former NFL player Aaron Hernandez suffered from a severe case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (Cte), Boston University researchers announced on Thursday. An examination of Hernandez’s brain was conducted by Dr. Ann McKee of Boston University’s Cte Center, which researches the debilitation brain disease. McKee concluded that Hernandez suffered Stage 3 Cte, with Stage 4 being the most severe. McKee’s conclusions were confirmed by a second doctor with extensive experience in Cte diagnosis. They also found that Hernandez had “early brain atrophy and large perforations in the septum pellucidum, a central membrane.” Also Read: Aaron Hernandez's Fiancee Tells Dr. Phil...

In an announcement today by his family’s attorney, Aaron Hernandez was added to the growing list of athletes who have been diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or Cte.

The degenerative brain disease is linked to repeated head trauma or concussions. Its symptoms depression, short-term memory loss, impulsive behavior and confusion — and these symptoms can begin to appear long after a player’s career. Evidence is mounting suggesting a link between playing football and the disease.

Cte can only be diagnosed after death, and in a recent study of the brains of 111 deceased NFL players, a Boston University researcher found...

A new study of former NFL players’ brains found that 99 percent of them tested positive for Cte — a degenerative brain disease that is caused by blows to the head and can lead to depression, impulsivity, rage and memory. In the study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, neuropathologist Dr. Ann McKee studied the donated brains of 202 former players and found that of the 111 that played in the NFL, 110 of them had Cte, which stands for chronic traumatic encephalopathy. (Her findings were consistent with her past studies — in September 2015 she concluded that 87...

NFL quarterback Ken Stabler had C.T.E., a Boston University study of his brain revealed. On a scale of 1 to 4, Stabler had high Stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy — the degenerative brain disease believed to be caused by repeated blows to the head, both concussive and sub-concussive. The details of the posthumous dissection were revealed Wednesday morning in the New York Times — mere days before the league’s huge Super Bowl 50 kicks off. “He had moderately severe disease,” Dr. Ann McKee, chief of neuropathology at the V.A. Boston Healthcare System, told the publication. “Pretty classic. It may be surprising since.