• The Los Angeles Times, Tuesday, February 22, 2011 10:30 AM

Former Chicago Bears safety and successful businessman Dave Duerson killed himself with a bullet to the heart. He did so to spare his head, asking that his brain be studied. The brain-tissue exam will be performed by the Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy.

The condition, called chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), was identified in the brain tissue of former Andre Waters, a Philadelphia Eagles player who killed himself in 2006, one of several suicides of former players whose brain tissue has evinced CTE on examination. NFL alumni groups meet to talk about poor pensions and health benefits, but they are also a walking menagerie of ailments incurred from the trauma they received as professional players.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has addressed the issue of head injuries and the league has changed rules to attempt to reduce their incidence, but Duerson's death will raise the stakes, particularly if his autopsy reveals CTE.

Read the whole story at The Los Angeles Times »