Former NFL star Brett Favre announces he has Parkinson’s disease

FFormer Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre said he was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

The three-time NFL MVP made the revelation during his testimony before a House committee on welfare reform. Favre had previously been implicated for his ties to the Mississippi welfare scandal involving the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and his investments in a company that was researching concussion treatments. The founder of that company pleaded guilty to wire fraud and was accused of embezzling funds received through TANF for personal use. Favre allegedly received TANF funds through Mississippi nonprofits for public appearances he did not make, but he has not been criminally charged. He has repaid some of the money he received, but state auditors say he still owes the program additional funds.

“I lost an investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug that I thought would help others, and I’m sure you’ll understand why it’s too late for me because I was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s,” he said in his statement.

Here you can find out what you should know about the disease.

What is Parkinson’s disease?

Parkinson’s is a brain disease that causes uncontrolled muscle movements and tremors that can affect everything from the extremities to more basic bodily functions like swallowing and speaking. The condition generally occurs with age, but can also be caused by certain genetic changes that run in families, as well as medications, exposure to toxins and traumatic injuries to the brain. In a 2018 interview with Today, Favre estimated that he had suffered “hundreds, maybe thousands” of concussions during his decades-long NFL career, during which he once played about 300 consecutive games. Favre did not specify whether his history of concussions was directly related to his condition, nor did he provide further details about his diagnosis. But since retiring from the NFL, he has spoken about his concerns about concussions and the dangers of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in football players, as well as his own experience with a decline in his short-term memory.

Are there any treatments?

There is currently no effective treatment that reverses or slows the progression of Parkinson’s disease — only medications or surgery that can relieve some of the motor symptoms by treating changes in the brain chemical dopamine that contribute to the disease. Patients generally receive a rotation of different medications, which often work for a time. But if the tremors or unpredictable muscle movements return or worsen, doctors may combine or add other drugs. Patients who no longer respond to available medications may be helped by deep brain stimulation, in which surgeons implant an electrode in the brain to control the tremors. But the implants only treat the tremors and involuntary muscle movements; they cannot slow other Parkinson’s symptoms, such as cognitive changes or balance problems.

The future of diagnosis and treatment

Researchers are working on novel treatment strategies and developing new methods to detect Parkinson’s earlier. Most of these methods target alpha-synuclein, a protein that accumulates in patients with the disease. Currently, doctors rely primarily on clinical symptoms – such as tremors, slow movements or muscle stiffness – to diagnose the disease. However, researchers are developing a new test that looks for alpha-synuclein in the spinal fluid, which could be a sign of early-stage Parkinson’s.

However, until better treatments become available that address the underlying cause of Parkinson’s, even such tests may not be that useful. “The problem is that we don’t have a treatment right now to potentially slow the disease,” says Rocco DiPaola, MD, a neurologist at the Hackensack Meridian Neuroscience Institute. “But if those treatments become available in the future, it would be good to identify those at risk earlier so we can potentially give them a drug that could either prevent or slow the progression of the disease.”