Dr. Omalu's Discoveries and Achievements

Floor Speech

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Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the medical achievements and discoveries of an extraordinary man from my district, Dr. Bennet Omalu.

Dr. Omalu's medical achievements, focusing primarily on brain injuries, have recently come to prominence with the movie ``Concussion,'' which chronicles Dr. Omalu's career and the controversies that his discoveries have created within the National Football League. Dr. Omalu's medical research is also particularly relevant as we prepare to watch Super Bowl 50 this weekend.

Dr. Omalu was born in Nnokwa, Nigeria, and was the sixth of seven siblings. His mother was a seamstress, and his father was a mining engineer and respected community leader who encouraged Omalu's career in medicine. His long medical career began at the age of 16 when he started attending medical school at the University of Nigeria. Omalu earned a bachelor of medicine and a bachelor of surgery in 1990.

In 1994, Dr. Omalu moved to Seattle, Washington, and completed an epidemiology fellowship at the University of Washington. In 1995, he moved to New York to complete his residency training in anatomic and clinical pathology. After completing his residency, Dr. Omalu trained as a forensic pathologist at the Allegheny County Coroner's Office in Pittsburgh.

It was here, after conducting an autopsy on former Pittsburgh Steeler Mike Webster, that Dr. Omalu made a groundbreaking discovery that would forever change our understanding of brain injuries. Dr. Omalu was the first to identify and diagnose and name chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is a disease prevalent in athletes who participate in high-contact sports like football, boxing, and wrestling.

Since Dr. Omalu's discovery, we now know that CTE is a progressive, degenerative disease that is found in people who have suffered repetitive brain trauma, including subconcussive hits that do not show any immediate symptoms. Early symptoms of CTE are usually detected 8 to 10 years after the original trauma and include disorientation, dizziness, and headaches.

As the disease progresses, individuals with CTE can experience memory loss, social instability, erratic behavior, and poor judgment. The worst cases of CTE show symptoms of dementia, vertigo, impeded speech, tremors, deafness, slowing of muscular movements, and suicidal tendencies.

Dr. Omalu's continued research on brain injuries and CTE has given us a greater understanding of the long-term effects of repeated brain trauma.

According to the CDC, approximately 3.8 million Americans every year suffer from concussions and approximately 208,000 people seek treatment in emergency rooms for traumatic brain injuries.

Approximately two-thirds of those emergency room visits are children ages 5 to 18. The rate of recurrence with traumatic brain injuries is high. An athlete who sustains a concussion is four to six times more likely to sustain a second concussion.

Of course, CTE research will also apply to veterans who suffer from traumatic brain injuries from combat activity.

Dr. Omalu has advocated for more education among athletes who play high-contact sports, teaching them about the risks associated with repetitive brain trauma. He has committed himself to advancing the medical understanding of CTE, brain injuries, and their effects on the people who suffer from them.

Today, Dr. Omalu has eight advanced degrees and board certifications, including master of public health and epidemiology and master of business administration. He resides in Lodi, California, and serves as the chief medical examiner of San Joaquin County, California, and as a professor at the UC Davis Department of Medical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.

The Bennet Omalu Foundation is committed to funding research, raising awareness, providing care, and finding cures for people who suffer from CTE and traumatic brain injuries. It is imperative, as a Nation, that we support research on CTE and brain injuries and figure out how much high-impact sports are affecting the health of our children and athletes. I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the research and achievements of Dr. Bennet Omalu and all he has done to further the understanding of the human brain.

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