Cognitive Impairment and Self-Reported Dementia in UK Retired Professional Soccer Players: A Cross Sectional Comparative Study

Abstract

Background Previous studies based on death certificates have found professional soccer players were more likely to die with neurodegenerative diseases, including dementia. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate whether retired professional male soccer players would perform worse on cognitive tests and be more likely to self-report dementia diagnosis than general population control men. Methods A cross-sectional comparative study was conducted between August 2020 and October 2021 in the United Kingdom (UK). Professional soccer players were recruited through different soccer clubs in England, and general population control men were recruited from the East Midlands in the UK. We obtained self-reported postal questionnaire data on dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases, comorbidities and risk factors from 468 soccer players and 619 general population controls. Of these, 326 soccer players and 395 general population controls underwent telephone assessment for cognitive function. Results Retired soccer players were approximately twice as likely to score below established dementia screening cut-off scores on the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test (OR 2.06, 95%CI 1.11–3.83) and Verbal Fluency (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.18–2.68), but not the Test Your Memory, modified Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status, and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living. Analyses were adjusted for age, education, hearing loss, body mass index, stroke, circulatory problems in the legs and concussion. While retired soccer players were younger, had fewer cardiovascular diseases and other morbidities and reported healthier lifestyles, 2.8% of retired soccer players reported medically diagnosed dementia and other neurodegenerative disease compared to 0.9% of controls (OR = 3.46, 95% CI 1.25–9.63) after adjustment for age and possible confounders. Conclusions UK male retired soccer players had a higher risk of performing below established cut-off scores of dementia screening tests and were more likely to self-report medically diagnosed dementia and neurodegenerative diseases, despite having better overall physical health and fewer dementia risk factors. Further study is needed to determine specific soccer-related risk factors.

Concussions in Soccer

“…Although most recent evidence focuses on American football, there are also several recent studies that examine the long-term consequences of concussion in soccer players or collision sports as a whole. [22][23][24][25][26] Epidemiological data linking worsening long-term mental health in soccer players with a history of concussion has been lacking until recently. One retrospective study examined former professional soccer players versus the general population.…”

“…Interestingly, the retired soccer players included in the study had fewer cardiovascular diseases and a healthier lifestyle compared to the general population, yet reported higher rates of dementia and neurodegenerative disease compared with controls after adjustment for age and confounders. 25 Another study evaluated frequency of heading and risk of cognitive impairment in retired male professional soccer players with a mean age of 63.68 years. Categories of heading frequency were divided into 0 to 5, 6 to 15, and greater than 15 times per match or training session.…”