Diagnostics, Imaging, and Genetics Network for the Objective Study and Evaluation of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (DIAGNOSE CTE) was a longitudinal multi-site study of diagnostic methods for CTE and potential risk factors for the disease. The primary objectives of the study are to collect and analyze neuroimaging and fluid biomarkers for the detection of CTE during life, characterize its clinical presentation, examine disease progression, refine and validate clinical diagnostic criteria, investigate risk factors for CTE, and develop a resource with anonymized data and biological samples for further analysis by the research community.

The study enrolled 240 male participants aged 45 to 74 years old who comprised three cohorts: 120 former National Football League players, 60 former college football players, and 60 healthy controls. Each participant completed a three day baseline visit consisting of a medical history assessment, neurological and cognitive exams, diagnostic imaging exams (i.e., MRI and PET), cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) testing, and questionnaires on mood and behavior. The participants also contributed blood and saliva samples. Follow-up visits began in October 2019 and were interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. They resumed in February 2021 as remote follow-up evaluations consisting of telephone-, online-, and videoconference-based cognitive, neuropsychiatric, and neurologic examinations, and in-home blood draws.