Can concussion constrain the Caped Crusader?

1 Concussion has been a pernicious, pervasive and under-reported health issue in sport and in public life. 2 3 Where available, data on the prevalence and incidence of concussion show an overall injury rate of 2.5 per 10 000 athletic exposures 4 and statistics from the NCAA show concussion rates increasing by 7% over a 16 year study period. 5 Guzkiewicz et al reported a prevalence of ~5.5% for both Division III and High School Football and that once a player had experienced a concussion, the likelihood of a second concussion that season was tripled. 6 Concussion and the long-term risks of repeated head trauma have been afforded a huge spotlight given the extreme popularity of the NFL and the concussion crisis recently exposed there. 7 The symptoms of concussion are characterised by the "rapid onset of short-lived impairment of neurological function that resolves spontaneously...symptoms and signs may evolve over a number of minutes to hours". Batman, a 1989 Warner Brothers film directed by Tim Burton; 126 min Michael Keaton 9 Batman, while moving stiffly, avoids most hits.\n Clearly, repeated blows to the head can lead to persistent effects on movement control and cognition and we know that Batman has been exposed to an excessive level of such trauma that we would anticipate him to be experiencing these things as well. Since we would expect large changes in his personality and behaviours if so, we would suggest 'yes'-Batman may indeed have CTE.