BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Merril Hoge doesn’t need anyone to tell him about the long-term impact concussions can have on a football player. He lives with it every day.

Hoge retired from the NFL in 1994 after suffering two concussions in less than two months while playing with the Chicago Bears. He blames the poor care he received after his first concussion, along with being rushed back on the field, which led to him nearly dying in the locker room after suffering the second concussion that season.

“Not receiving proper initial care after my first brain trauma nearly cost me my life,” said Hoge, an NFL analyst for ESPN. “That is where the biggest mistakes are made.”

Hoge represents a growing number of retired NFL players who blame repetitive concussions in their careers on problems later in life. The league is now starting a study to see if brain injuries from a football career put players at a great risk for cognitive impairments like dementia or Alzheimer’s.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said there is currently no medical evidence to suggest any connection between concussions in pro football and long-term adverse affects to the brain. However, a study by the University of North Carolina’s Center of Retired Athletes reported two years ago retired players with three or more concussions had a fivefold increase of being diagnosed with a mild cognitive impairment and a threefold increase of reported significant memory problems compared with those players without a history of concussions.

Aiello said that study only relied on surveys and not scientific data. The center counters that it is in the process of following up on that survey with additional research.

“All of the information out there is helpful, but it is not definitive,” said Dr. Andrew Tucker, who is on the NFL’s committee on the subject and the Ravens’ team physician. “We’re trying to take the research to the next level.”

The issue of linking concussions to mental impairments surfaced locally after Hall of Fame Baltimore Colts tight end John Mackey revealed he suffers from frontotemporal dementia, a disease similar in its effects to Alzheimer’s.

More recently, the NFL’s concussion policy came into question following the suicide of former safety Andre Waters, whom the New York Times reported had a brain that resembled an 85-year-old man with Alzheimer’s and that concussions played a role in his brain damage.

“We’re starting to get more and more research about things we’ve expected all along,” NFL retired players’ steering committee president Jean Fugett said while addressing a group of retired Baltimore Colts recently. “There are a lot of players who have injuries that they don’t fully understand, but know that it came from football.”

Aiello said while Walters’ case is tragic, it is also rare, considering there are hundreds of retired players who had concussions and show no signs of dementia or Alzheimer’s.

“Concussions may only be one part of the puzzle,” Dr. Tucker said. “If there is a link, then we need to identify what predisposition they may have which puts them at a greater risk than players who are doing quite well.”