Brain disease affecting pro football players appears to be rare in the military, study suggests

A new study suggests that a brain disease caused by repeated blows to the head and concussions — most notably found in hundreds of former NFL players — is rare in service members.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, has been linked with contact sports, especially football and boxing. More recently, the military experience, to include blast exposure, has been discussed as a potential risk factor for the disease.