Personal Injury Law

BRAIN INJURIES STEAL LIVES IN SO MANY WAYS

Justin Strzelczyk, 6 feet 6 inches and 300 pounds, was a monstrous presence on the Pittsburgh Steelers? offensive line from 1990-98. He was known for his friendly, banjo-playing spirit and gluttony for combat.

But, according to the New York Times, on a September morning in 2004, Justin Strzelczyk was apparently experiencing a breakdown, when, during a 40-mile high-speed police chase in central New York, his pickup truck collided with a tractor-trailer and exploded, killing him instantly. Was Strzelczyk?s bizarre behavior caused by chronic traumatic encephalopathy [CTE], a condition which can cause memory loss, depression and eventually Alzheimer?s disease-like dementia, even in a 36 year-old man?

After Strzelczyk?s death, Dr. Bennet Omalu, a neuropathologist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, diagnosed Strzelczyk as having CTE. Unfortunately, tests for CTE cannot be performed on a living person other than through an intrusive tissue biopsy. Post mortem tests on Strzelczyk?s brain tissue confirmed Dr. Omalu?s diagnosis. ?This is irreversible brain damage,? Omalu said. ?It?s most likely caused by concussions sustained on the football field.?

Full post as published by New York Injury Talk Blog on January 28, 2008 (boomark / email).