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Hand-held EEG device can quickly assess brain bleeding in head injuries

In a clinical trial conducted among adults in 11 hospitals, researchers have shown that a hand-held EEG device approved in 2016 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that is commercially available can quickly and with 97 percent accuracy rule out whether a person with a head injury likely has brain bleeding and needs further evaluation and treatment.

5 Apr 2017

Study unravels mysteries behind cause of acute liver failure

Twenty years ago, the federal government funded the study of a condition quietly killing hundreds of Americans a year - acute liver failure, or ALF. Growing evidence had linked ALF to overdoses of acetaminophen, the popular over-the-counter pain medication many viewed as harmless at the time.

29 Mar 2017

First-of-its-kind mouse model could help study post-malaria epilepsy in children

A first-of-its-kind mouse model could lead to an understanding of how cerebral malaria infection leads to the development of epilepsy in children, and to the prevention of seizures.

23 Mar 2017

CYSTINET-Africa project aims to find new strategies against pork tapeworm infection

Infections of the human nervous system with larval stages of the pork tapeworm are the most common cause of epileptic seizures in Africa.

6 Mar 2017

Researchers develop new tool to evaluate survival, recovery in elderly patients with isolated TBI

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death for people age 45 and younger in the United States, but, as people live longer, this type of injury is becoming more prevalent in those 75 and older.

3 Mar 2017

FDA approves new nasal spray for adults who overproduce urine at night

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Noctiva (desmopressin acetate) nasal spray for adults who awaken at least two times per night to urinate due to a condition known as nocturnal polyuria (overproduction of urine during the night).

3 Mar 2017

$Study finds ketogenic diet as 'feasible' option for people with super-refractory status epilepticus$

Study finds ketogenic diet as 'feasible' option for people with super-refractory status epilepticus

In a small phase I and II clinical trial, Johns Hopkins researchers and colleagues elsewhere found that the high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet was a safe and effective treatment option for the majority of adults experiencing a relatively rare, often fatal and always severe form of epilepsy marked by prolonged seizures that require medically induced comas to prevent them from further damaging the body and the brain.

27 Feb 2017

Robotic telemedicine could provide reliable assessment of comatose patients

Reliable assessment of comatose patients in intensive care units is critical to the patients' care. Providers must recognize clinical status changes quickly to undertake proper interventions.

27 Jan 2017

Recovery from TBI appears to go hand-in-hand with improvement of sleep problems

After a traumatic brain injury (TBI), people also experience major sleep problems, including changes in their sleep-wake cycle.

22 Dec 2016

TSRI scientists unravel mystery of ‘food coma’ phenomenon

Anyone who has drifted into a fuzzy-headed stupor after a large holiday meal is familiar with the condition commonly known as a "food coma."

22 Nov 2016

Researchers compare how neuronal activity differs in conscious and anesthetized mice

Establishing how the brain produces consciousness is one of the most challenging research questions in the field of neuroscience.

11 Nov 2016

Study reveals way to actively reverse anesthetic-induced unconsciousness

The latest study from a Massachusetts General Hospital/Massachusetts Institute of Technology team investigating the mechanisms underlying general anesthesia finds that stimulating a specific group of neurons in mice produces signs of arousal -- including getting on their feet and walking -- even as the animals continue to receive the anesthetic drug isoflurane.

27 Oct 2016

Researchers develop novel tool to predict person's chance of survival after gunshot wounds

Researchers have developed a first-of-its-kind tool to help predict a person's chance of survival after a gunshot wound in the head or other penetrating injury, according to a new study published in the October 26, 2016, online issue of Neurology, a medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

27 Oct 2016

Patients with hypothyroidism have nagging symptoms despite normal TSH tests, medication use

About 15 percent of the 10-12 million people in the U.S. with hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid, continue to feel sick despite following the standard of care recommended by the American Thyroid Association.

13 Oct 2016

Study reveals mechanism that regulates fluid intake in the body to prevent fatal water intoxication

A multi-institute study led by Monash University has revealed for the first time the mechanism that regulates fluid intake in the human body and stops us from over-drinking, which can cause potentially fatal water intoxication.

7 Oct 2016

CHOP researchers exploit gene discovery in severe epilepsy to identify precision treatment

An international team of researchers who discovered a new gene disorder that causes severe childhood epilepsy leveraged that finding to reduce seizures in two children.

20 Sep 2016

Free, student-run CPPT clinic at Rutgers helps improve physical function among patients

Ulises Mantilla was a 21-year-old college student when he suffered a stroke at his home in Newark in 2012. The last thing he remembers about that day is dialing 911. He awoke from a coma a month later in the hospital, unable to walk or perform simple tasks.

20 Sep 2016

UCLA researchers use noninvasive ultrasound technique to jump-start the brain of coma patient

A 25-year-old man recovering from a coma has made remarkable progress following a treatment at UCLA to jump-start his brain using ultrasound.

25 Aug 2016

Many medical specialists accept shaken baby syndrome as valid medical diagnosis

A University of Colorado School of Medicine researcher and colleagues have conducted the first-ever survey of physicians on the validity of "abusive head trauma" as a medical diagnosis.

16 Aug 2016

Majority of American adults use prescription drugs inappropriately and dangerously

The majority of American adults taking opioids and other commonly prescribed medications use them in ways that put their health at risk, including potentially dangerous combinations with other drugs, according to a new study from Quest Diagnostics, the world’s leading provider of diagnostic information services.

From Quest Diagnostics 29 Jul 2016