Dementia pugilistica (DP) is a type of neurodegenerative disease or dementia that may affect amateur or professional boxers as well as athletes in other sports who suffer concussions. A variant of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) it is also called chronic boxer’s encephalopathy, traumatic boxer’s encephalopathy, boxer’s dementia, chronic traumatic brain injury associated with boxing (CTBI-B), and punch-drunk syndrome (‘punchy’). Symptoms and signs of DP develop progressively over a long latent period sometimes amounting to decades, with the average time of onset being about 12–16 years after the start of a career in boxing. The condition is thought to affect around 15-20% of professional boxers.
The condition is caused by repeated concussive and sub-concussive blows (blows that are below the threshold of force necessary to cause concussion), or both. Because of the concern that boxing may cause DP, there is a movement among medical professionals to ban the sport. Medical professionals have called for such a ban since as early as the 1950s.
This condition is a rarity in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. If another fighter has been diagnosed with this ailment it has either been kept under wraps or I have personally never heard of the case.
Gary Goodridge revealed to mmaweekly.com yesterday that he has been diagnosed with this disease and he is prepared to deal with it in the best way that he can.
Here is what he said:
“You get the news you just have to deal with it, live with it. There’s no treatment that goes along with it. There’s pills to make it slow down the process, but it’s inevitable. I would like to share with people, but I think most of my damage came from K-1. MMA really wasn’t an issue because there’s hardly any shots to the head. 90-percent of my injuries came from K-1, where there’s nothing but head trauma, head injuries over and over again. I have no regrets. I love the way I live my life, I mean I would like to make little changes, but no, I have no regrets. I loved the way my life was, I lived a good life, and I’m happy with what I did.”
Gary Goodridge started off his MMA Career at UFC 8. He then went on to compete for PRIDE starting at PRIDE 1. His career spanned the course of 14-years and over that time he competed in 46 professional contests.
Additionally he was a professional kick boxer with 38 fights to his credit.
Read More: Gary Goodridge (News), UFC, PRIDE
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god bless u man, live your life how u want too.
Sad to here, scary to hear about head trauma. Makes you wonder how yours is when you hear this type of thing..
hear*
K1 is mma with no grappling. So I imagine head trauma is gonna he more common. What I find shocking is 15-20% of boxers experience it. That is shockingly high
Kickboxing*
Good luck, Gary. Dementia is a scary disease and he might not beat it or develop a cure, but him being upfront and honest about his condition will raise greater awareness and that is a crucial step in solving these types of diseases/conditions.
I wish Gary well, and I hope he continues to stay positive and move forward with life.
shitty. that sux Gary god bless.
My heart goes out to Big Daddy and his family. I am going through a similar situation with my father and will probably suffer the effects of dementia when I grow old. It is not a fun thing and the accompanying depression is crushing. I hope he keeps his head up and lives proudly for many more years.
This news brings a degree of grief and sorrow. This man gave his heart to the art he loved; the art of fighting. He understood the price and risk associated with the life he chose and in the final analysis, viewing his career in retrospect, has no regrets. May he by the grace of God continue to live a bountiful and wholesome life that he doesn’t have to apologize for.
I think kickboxers and especially boxers are more at risk, than MMA athletes.
It’s called taking face punches from..Fedor the last emperor!
I think anyone fighting fedor during his prime is asking for dementia on a piece of platter. Sad to hear this though. He was one of my favorite fighters when i was a young kid.