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Retired NFL players, notably linemen, have high risk of artery plaque, independent study shows

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Retired NFL players, notably linemen, have high risk of artery plaque, independent study shows

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Retired NFL players may have a high risk of undiagnosed, untreated coronary artery disease (CAD) that often occurs without symptoms, according to new, independent, preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2026, held Nov. 6–9 in Chicago.

CAD occurs when cholesterol plaque deposits in the heart arteries, limiting blood flow to the heart and reducing oxygen delivery. Plaque buildup can lead to a heart attack.

"Nearly 9 out of 10 men in this study had plaque in their coronary arteries, 4 in 10 had a significant narrowing, and yet almost none of them experienced any symptoms, and prior to the scan less than a third were on statins to lower their cholesterol," said study co-author Campbell Rogers, M.D., chief medical officer at Heartflow Inc., a medical technology company advancing noninvasive heart disease diagnosis through artificial intelligence.

"These results are consistent with the fact that 1 in 3 former NFL players dies from heart disease."

This study is believed to be the first assessment of coronary plaque in retired professional football players. It focused on 200 retired NFL players enrolled in the GAMEFILM Registry who underwent coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) and Heartflow AI coronary plaque analysis (AI-CPA). The AI analysis creates a personalized, color-coded 3D model of heart arteries and measures plaque volume, type and impact on blood flow.

"We expected to find plaque, but we did not expect to find such a striking gap between how much significant disease these former football players had and how few of them had any symptoms," Rogers said.


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