Family History, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy Linked to Middle Age Aggression

People with chronic traumatic encephalopathy and a family history of mental illness have a significantly higher risk of aggression in middle age than those with just one of these factors.

People with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) with a family history of mental illness may have an increased risk of aggression in middle age. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative tauopathy associated with exposure to repetitive head impacts, including from contact sports and military service.

The study was published in the journal Neurology (). People with CTE with a family history of mental illness are significantly more likely to behave aggressively than individuals with only CTE or just a family history, suggesting that these risk factors combined increase the likelihood of aggression more than they do alone.

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‘Participants with both chronic traumatic encephalopathy and a family history of mental illness scored higher on aggression scales than those with only chronic traumatic encephalopathy. #CTE #mentalillness #medindia’

A total of 845 individuals who had played contact sports or served in the military, experiencing repeated head trauma, participated in the study. Among them, 329 were professional football players.

The participants, with an average age of 60, donated their brains for research after passing away. Of the entire group, 383 people (45%) had a family history of mental illness, and 589 individuals (70%) were found to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

Researchers interviewed family members or spouses of the participants about their aggressive behavior. They were also asked whether the participants’ parents, siblings or children were ever diagnosed with major depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder or other mood or psychiatric disorders. If any family member had a diagnosis, the participant was considered to have a family history of mental illness.

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Researchers then divided participants into four groups:

256 people, or 30%, with CTE and a family history of mental illness
333 people, or 40%, with CTE and without a family history of mental illness
127 people, or 15%, without CTE and with a family history of mental illness
129 people, or 15%, without CTE and a family history of mental illness

Researchers asked family members about the participants’ aggressive behavior, such as whether they had severe arguments with others or got in physical fights, where scores ranged from zero to 44.

They found that during adulthood people with CTE and a family history of mental illness had an average score of 19 compared to people with CTE without a family history of mental illness who had an average score of 17.

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“This relationship was most striking for participants who died between 40 and 59 years old,” said Mez MD, MS, of Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine.

After adjusting for other factors, such as total years playing contact sports and military history, researchers found that those who died between 40 and 59 years old who had CTE and a family history of mental illness scored an average of 0.64 standard deviations higher on a scale measuring aggression when compared to those with CTE, but without a family history of mental illness. For people who did not have CTE, having a family history of mental illness did not increase their risk for aggressive behavior.

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“The link between a family history of mental illness and aggression may be through a shared genetic background and also through a shared environment and common behaviors, such as childhood experiences with family members,” said Mez.

“Identifying people who are more likely to show symptoms of aggression based on family history of mental illness would give us a way to predict the consequences of CTE and identify who may benefit most from treatment options.”

A limitation of the study was that the study relied on past information from family members and spouses who may not have remembered information accurately.

Reference:

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, Family History of Mental Illness, and Aggression in Brain Donors With Repetitive Head Impact Exposure - (https:www.neurology.org/doi/10.1212/WNL.0000000000210056)

Source-Eurekalert