Northeast Ohio Medical University Alumna Leads Chicago Site for Concussion Research

Holly J. Benjamin, M.D. (’94) will lead a University of Chicago research group participating in a major national study of concussion and head impact exposure in National College Athletic Association (NCAA) student athletes. The Concussion Assessment, Research and Education (CARE) Consortium study now involves 30 institutions nationally.

The study will enroll more than 25,000 NCAA student athletes, both male and female, over a period of three years. It is funded for $30 million by the NCAA and U.S. Department of Defense.

The risks of concussion have been the topic of frequent media reports—particularly as related to the later onset of illnesses, including depression followed by suicide, in football players. With professional athletes such as the late boxer Muhammad Ali, who developed Parkinson’s disease, additional questions have been raised about possible associations between head injuries and neurodegenerative disease.

The Longitudinal Clinical Study Core of the CARE Consortium study, led by the University of Michigan, will be the largest investigation of its type, according to a release. The multi-institutional clinical research protocol will study ‘’the natural history of concussion.’’ Each participant will receive a pre-season evaluation and be monitored if an injury occurs.

Dr. Benjamin is professor of pediatrics and orthopaedic surgery and also the director of primary care sports medicine at the University of Chicago, which is a Division III NCAA school. Dr. Benjamin is the principal investigator for the research team. She will oversee data collection at UChicago, where baseline testing will be done by the university’s athletic training staff.

At NEOMED, researchers in the Neurodegenerative Disease and Aging focus area continue to study the balance between environment and genetics in the development of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and glaucoma.