Mild traumatic brain injury leads to reactivation of herpes simplex virus type 1, which may promote neurodegeneration and contribute to Alzheimer’s, new research suggested.

Concussions and repetitive head trauma in sports like football and boxing, once accepted as an unpleasant consequence of intense athletic competition, are now recognized as serious health threats.

Repeated head injuries could reawaken a dormant virus in the brain, triggering the onset of Alzheimer's Disease and dementia, scientists have found. Researchers from Oxford's Institute of Population Ageing,

Multiple blows to the head can more than double the chance of having a neurodegenerative condition - oakstudio22/iStockphoto Head injuries may “wake up” dormant viruses in the brain and trigger dementia,