Lay summary – There is growing public and scientific interest in chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a brain condition linked to repeated head impacts and most often discussed in relation to former contact sport athletes. At present, CTE can only be confirmed after death by examining brain tissue. Because of this, doctors and researchers have proposed a set of symptoms, called traumatic encephalopathy syndrome, to help identify people who might have CTE during life. However, it is not yet clear how accurately these symptoms predict the brain changes seen in CTE.