WHY THE MMA COULD BE A KILLER!

mksu19 · Jan 10, 2009

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/mma/news?slug=mmajunkie-Doc_Benjamin_concussions_mental_illness&prov=mmajunkie&type=lgns

Yahoo! Sports Canada said:

Ask the Doc: Dr. Benjamin on MMA, concussions and mental illness
Dr. Johnny Benjamin, MMAjunkie.com
Jan 7, 13:10 EST

PrintIn the wake up the recent deaths of MMA fighters Evan Tanner, Justin Levens and Justin Eilers, many fans are struggling to find a correlation.

While there may be none, some people, including researcher Chris Nowinski, see combat sports (and concussions) going hand-in-hand with depression and mental illness in later life.

In his latest Ask the Doc column, combat-sports specialist Dr. Johnny Benjamin discusses the topic, specifically as it relates to MMA, and why theres so little relevant information available on it. He also gives two reasons why theres so much controversy about trying to connect the two.

Q. Dave Meltzer recently wrote an article discussing three unrelated deaths of former UFC fighters; two of the fallen fighters were known to suffer from depression. Metzler notes Chris Nowinskis studies correlating boxing to mental illness later in life. Many fans and fighters feel MMA is safer than boxing. MMA fighters are more likely to suffer a few concussive blows (i.e. knockouts) as opposed to a myriad of padded shots as in boxing. Many fights end without any substantial head shots. Is it fair to assume the same long-term consequences in MMA? Steve in Los Angeles

A. Steve, you are asking the million-dollar question.

Also, my hat is off to Dave Meltzer for even attempting to intelligently discuss this difficult subject. This and apparently many other topics are difficult for the MMA faithful to discuss reasonably without deteriorating into emotional outbursts, personal attacks and worse. Good articles are written to make intelligent readers think not to defame anyone or anything.

Do repeated blows to the head make MMA participants more likely to suffer with depression or other forms of mental illness later in life? Its a great question and one that needs to be investigated and researched now rather than adopting a wait-and-see approach.

The current form of MMA is relatively early in its life cycle. We are talking less than 20 years. As major sports go, MMA is still in its infancy. Therefore, I would assume nothing with respect to the potential long-term health consequences. But as youve implied, I would learn a few things from the collective experience of other, more mature (older) contact and combat sports. It is also prudent to be proactive when it comes to fighter safety, since it is very difficult, if not impossible, to fully restore competitors mental health once it has traumatically been taken from them.

Retrospective (looking back after the deed is done) studies of professional athletes involved in boxing, football, soccer, hockey and rugby seem to suggest a link between repetitive blows to the head, concussions (MTBI, which is minor traumatic brain injury) and depression or dementia. This is a very controversial statement for at least two major reasons.

First, it is very difficult to prove a direct causal relationship. Did the accumulation of blows to the head directly cause permanent brain injury that led to depression or dementia? Or are the athletes that participate in these sports on the professional level more prone to depression to begin with? Do their inherent, aggressive, possibly somewhat antisocial personality traits allow them to achieve in these sports at a high level? Simply put, they may be a little crazy or unstable to begin with. Thats why they do so well in these contact and combat sports. (Absolutely no disrespect is intended to those that suffer with mental illness.)

Second, the powers that govern these major sports fear the cost associated with acknowledging a relationship between participation in these sports and subsequent dementia and/or depression. Simply put, if the sport caused it, somebody is going to have to pay for it. Forget lawsuits and punitive damages (which will most certainly come); just the cost of long-term care would be staggering. No one is prepared to pay that without a serious fight.

Professional MMA fighters should assume nothing and be prepared for everything. When your favorite fighters careers are over and no one is any longer screaming their names, paying them sponsorship fees and buying their pay-per-view appearances, who is going to pay their medical expenses and provide assistance to their often forgotten caregivers? Your heroes have families too.

Again, Steve, its a great question but not one anyone can answer definitively at this time.

Dr. Johnny Benjamin is MMAjunkie.coms medical columnist and consultant and a noted combat-sports specialist. He was also recently appointed to the ABCs medical advisory team and will help review and refine the unified rules of MMA. Dr. Benjamin writes an Ask the Doc column every two weeks for MMAjunkie.com. To submit a question for a future column, email him at askthedoc [AT] mmajunkie.com, or share your questions and thoughts in the comments section below. You can find Dr. Benjamin online at www.drjohnnybenjamin.com, and you can read his other sports-related articles at blog.drjohnnybenjamin.com.

Check out more UFC News at MMAjunkie.com. This story originally appeared on MMAjunkie.com and is syndicated on Yahoo! Sports as part of a content-partnership deal between the two sites.
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ag512bbi · Jan 11, 2009

Send to Sports Section, under MMA

62 250 GTO · Jan 11, 2009

Is this news? Boxers and the like have been the test subjects of this along with football players etc.

Gilles27 · Jan 11, 2009

I don't know how much money needs to be spent determining that a career in getting the crap knocked out of you can have long-term health effects. Unless they plan on using research to change the rules of the sport, thus weakening the allure (yeah, right), then game on, good luck and consider yourselves warned.

Bas · Jan 12, 2009

Some Genius said:

combat sports (and concussions) going hand-in-hand with depression and mental illness in later life. /

No **** siree.
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