Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a degenerative brain disease that results from repeated trauma to the head. The disease can cause changes in how you feel, think, and act. What you don’t know about CTE can put you at risk for long-term physical and mental health complications.
At Klarity Clinic, our team of expert anesthesiologists offer ketamine infusion therapies for people with hard-to-treat anxiety, depression, and other conditions that can result from CTE. Our therapies help restore the health of your brain, so you can function optimally.
CTE is a degenerative brain disease that can develop when concussions or other traumatic brain injuries set off a chain reaction in a protein called tau. Dysfunctional tau can spread throughout your brain, killing off brain cells and affecting how you feel, think, and behave.
Symptoms of CTE can include:
CTE can also lead to short-term memory loss and confusion and lead to dementia in the long-term.
Though common in athletes, CTE can also affect others who have a history of head trauma, such as military veterans, people who’ve been in car accidents or had bad falls, or victims of violence.
There is a lot still being learned about CTE and its effect on a person’s long-term health, and there are things you should know about this type of brain disease.
Both concussions and subconcussive head impacts can cause CTE, but they are different conditions.
Subconcussive head impacts develop from repeated hits, blows, or jolts to the head but don’t result in any symptoms. When you have a concussion, you develop symptoms soon after, such as dizziness, double vision, or a headache.
Many people who develop CTE have no history of concussions but do have a history of subconcussive head impacts.
Not everyone who takes a hit to the head will develop CTE. In particular, kids who take a tumble or get a bump on the head aren’t at risk for the disease.
Boxers and other athletes that take repeated hits to the head over several years are most at risk for developing CTE and its symptoms.
People who develop CTE typically won’t present symptoms until many years after the trauma occurred or after they stop playing high-impact sports.
It’s important that you speak with your physician after any type of head injury to minimize your risk for complications.
The only way to confirm that CTE is the cause of your symptoms Is to check for changes in your brain after your death.
Symptoms of CTE can relate to many other health conditions, so you need to get a comprehensive exam and other diagnostic testing to rule out Alzheimer’s and other diseases.
There’s currently no cure for CTE, but our team at Klarity Clinic can help you manage anxiety, depression, and other symptoms of the disease with ketamine infusion therapy if traditional medications aren’t working.
Ketamine works by rewiring pathways in your brain to improve its health and function. Infusions of the medication can also establish new neural connections in your brain to quickly relieve severe symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other mood disorders common with CTE.
To find out if you’re a candidate for ketamine infusion therapy to treat CTE-related symptoms, call the Klarity Clinic office nearest to you today, or book a consultation online.
