Athletes' deaths show dysfunction in pro sports

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June 9, 2012

Athletes' deaths show dysfunction in pro sports

Anonymous Daily Star The Daily Star Sat Jun 09, 2012, 03:25 AM EDT

The NHL's Stanley Cup Finals were briefly overshadowed this week by revelations about the tragic demise of New York Rangers forward Derek Boogaard.

According to a New York Times report, Boogaard was given more than 100 prescriptions for thousands of painkillers and sleeping pills by team doctors before dying last year at age 28. Some doctors even continued to provide the drugs after team officials learned that Boogaard had developed an addiction and was admitted into the league's substance-abuse program in September 2009.

The 6-foot-8-inch Boogaard, dubbed "the Boogeyman" by teammates, was regarded in his prime as arguably the league's most feared enforcer. As such, doling out -- and enduring -- physical punishment was just part of the seemingly invincible Boogaard's job description.

But during his six-year career, Boogaard suffered a series of severe head injuries, and after his death, Boston University researchers determined that he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a disease caused by repeated blows to the head.

CTE has been blamed for a startling string of suicides in recent years by retired National Football League players, including those of Terry Long, Dave Duerson, Andre Waters and Ray Easterling. Easterling was part of a lawsuit claiming the NFL tried to suppress evidence that football injuries lead to brain damage. The brain of Junior Seau, who killed himself last month, hasn't yet been tested for CTE, but it's noteworthy that Duerson and Seau died of gunshots to the chest -- leaving their brains intact for researchers.

One symptom of CTE is a predisposition to addiction, and Boogaard's father said he believes his son's downward spiral was exacerbated by easy access to drugs from team doctors.

"Derek was an addict," Len Boogaard told the Times. "But why was he an addict? Everyone said he had 'off-ice' issues. No, it was hockey."

Boogaard's death has shed new light on two growing problems; a lack of accountability among doctors prescribing narcotics, and the overwhelming pressure on professional athletes to perform under conditions that are hazardous to their long-term well-being.

That first concern was alleviated somewhat this week when Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and state legislative leaders reached a deal on prescription drug oversight. The plan will require real-time online reporting every time a prescription is filled by a pharmacist. It's an effort to combat "doctor shopping," in which a patient complains of the same ailment to multiple doctors as a means of obtaining drugs.

But for professional athletes, the leagues must take the lead in ensuring their players receive proper medical advice and treatment. With so much pressure to play -- and win -- at any cost, leaving players and teams accountable only to themselves has had predictably tragic results.