University of Pittsburgh Brain Health Initiative

Recruiting now

Conditions studied: Traumatic Brain Injury

In brief

This project will define the prevalence of brain health (i.e., normal cognitive, neuromotor, behavioral function) in living professional football retirees and group-matched controls through a comprehensive assessment of clinical, neuroimaging, and biomarker measures.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT04708613

Run by

David Okonkwo, MD, PhD

People needed

300

Starts

2019-11-18

Expected to finish

2026-12-01

Last updated by the study team

2026-06-22

Who can join

Age: 29 and older, up to 59. Sex: male. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Former professional football player/exposed group:
• Professional football retiree aged 29-59
• Played a minimum of 3 professional football seasons, with a minimum of 3 games in each season
• Fluent in English (translations are not available/validated for most neuropsychological tests)
• Control/unexposed group:
• Age 29-59 male
• High school education or beyond
• Fluent in English (translations are not available/validated for most neuropsychological tests)

You may not qualify if…

• Control/unexposed group:
• Played organized football beyond high school
• History of severe TBI
• Current unstable cardiovascular disorder
• For both groups:
• Prior history of psychosis (such as schizophrenia), or other major neurological disorder that would interfere with testing, in the opinion of the primary investigator.
• Contraindication to MR imaging, such as ferrous metal, pacemakers, or concerns about claustrophobia

Where it is running

• University of Pittsburgh Department of Neurosurgery — Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.