"Immunosclerosis" threatens football players after retirement

Italian researchers have discovered that Italian footballers are more likely to develop ALS than other people.

Despite the researchers' inability to know why the player was specifically infected with the disease, the statistics recorded by the study indicate that the incidence of infection between players compared to the general public is about 1.7 "and that they suffered before the others of about 20 years.

Although much recent research has shown that American football is responsible for several diseases, including ALS, the new study presented in May at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, that also includes football, which is common in most countries of the world.

The head of the research team, Dr. Ituri Beiji of the Italian Pharmaceutical Research Institute Mario Negri, has noted the death of some Italian footballers as a result of the disease. He asked if it was simply a random coincidence or examples of a larger problem.

To answer this question, Dr. Bégi reviewed the records of 50,000 Series A players between 1959 and 2000. These records include information not only about the clubs for which they played, but also about their date of birth, which is the most medically beneficial.

The researcher and her colleagues investigated reports to find out what happened to players after retirement and discovered 33 cases of disease progression, a figure that may not reflect the true scale of the problem.

"Since the reports speak of famous players, there are a lot of lesser known players who are likely to be injured, so the actual number could be higher," Biggie said in an article published on IFLSCENCE on February 28. "But even with 33 diagnoses, this represents 3.2 cases of pericardial muscle stiffness per 100,000 population per year across the entire Italian population, and the overall incidence is 1.7".

Baiji thinks that the numbers are much larger than those she has documented successfully, but the age of the infection is more interesting than the numbers.

According to the date of birth of each player among the records that I saw, the average age of the disease was 43, while the disease attacked most people infected at the age of 63 years old.

"The reason may be painful head shots and intense physical exercise," says Baiji.

Insufficient statistics

These statistics are not enough to confirm a relationship between playing ball and getting sick, said Dr. Nader Abdelmajid, a neurologist at the Egyptian Ministry of Health.

"Further studies on a larger sample should be conducted, and the study should specifically indicate what happens during football practice and cause injury," said Dr. Abdulmajid at Al Ain.

what is the disease?

The disease affects the nervous system, damages nerve cells and leads to disability.

This disease begins with muscle tremors, limb weakness, or speech interference, before affecting the control of the muscles needed for mobility, speech, nutrition, and breathing.

Called "Lou Gehrig's Disease", named after a famous baseball player infected with this virus, the deceased scientist Stephen Hawking is one of the most famous people who was injured at age 21 years old.