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Modified Drop Tower Impact Tests for American Football Helmets
Published on: February 19, 2017
Participation in Professional American-Style Football and Suicide Mortality: 1979-2019
Rachel Grashow1,2, Niki Konstantinides1,2, Benjamin C Anderson3
1Football Players Health Study at Harvard University, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Journal of Neurotrauma
|July 14, 2026
Summary
Recent studies show a twofold higher suicide rate among former National Football League (NFL) players compared to other professional athletes. This highlights the urgent need for enhanced post-career support and screening for retired NFL players.
Area of Science:
- Sports Medicine
- Neurology
- Public Health
Background:
- Professional athletes, particularly those in contact sports like football, face unique mental health challenges.
- Previous research indicated reduced suicide risk in athletes with head injuries compared to the general population, but this study investigates specific leagues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare suicide risk among National Football League (NFL) players versus Major League Baseball (MLB) and National Basketball Association (NBA) players.
- To examine if suicide risk has changed over time, particularly after increased awareness of head injury effects.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of death data from 1979-2019 for 20,765 NFL, 9,684 MLB, and 3,564 NBA players.
- Calculation of hazard ratios (HRs) for suicide, comparing NFL players to a combined MLB + NBA group, adjusted for covariates.
- Stratification of follow-up data at 2011 to assess changes in suicide risk.
Main Results:
- Overall suicide rates were similar between NFL and MLB + NBA players (HR=1.20).
- No difference in suicide rates was observed through 2010 (HR=0.91).
- A significantly higher suicide rate was found among NFL players post-2010 (HR=2.64, p=0.04), indicating a twofold increase.
Conclusions:
- Former NFL players show a recent, elevated risk of suicide compared to MLB and NBA players.
- Findings emphasize the critical need for improved post-career support systems and proactive mental health screening for retired NFL athletes.
- Further research into the long-term impacts of head injuries in professional sports is warranted.
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