I think that is one of the most frustrating aspects of CTE; there is no one answer. While they know that CTE is caused by repeated hits, there is no one magic number. It can be assumed that a major concussion followed by a minor can trigger this as likely as someone who's suffered 10 hits and the 11th was the final nail. I think the best thing we, as parents, can do is just stay vigilant with our children's health and mindful of the severity of a concussion.
I also think it's time for us, as parents, to stop allowing fellow cheer parents and/or coaches to get away with bragging or pushing athletes further than they should. If you hear someone bragging about a child pushing through it, call them out---it won't be comfortable, but at least they can't claim ignorance later. If you see a coach telling a child the same thing---maybe rethink whether that gym is the right place to be giving your money to? I realize for a lot of cheer families the end game is The Summit and then World's...hell, my CP is only 7 and talks about "When I do to World's..." because that's the end picture in her head...however, I also think we need to be honest with ourselves and potentially pull the plug far earlier. We do know, thanks to medical research, that a single concussion makes further concussions not only easier to have but their symptoms also tend to go longer---I can't sit here and say if CP sustains a major concussion that I'd let her get to a senior level cheer team. Minor injuries I have no issue rating probabilities and looking at the big picture of what it'll mean, but as much as she loves cheerleading I will not let her sacrifice her body for it. For those who don't know me well, my husband is a medically retired Veteran out of the Army; after six blasts in a single deployment, his 30 year old body is closer to 65. There were days he couldn't hold out youngest child as a baby, he will live every single day from then until he dies in pain, and there is nothing to 'fix' him...no miracle surgery, no magic drug...nothing. He will live with these injuries for life---that was his job and that is what he agreed to when he signed up to be a soldier, but to potentially have the same thing happen to CP over cheerleading? Not happening.
Sorry for my soap box.
