Traumatic Brain Injury News and Research

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Traumatic brain injury (TBI), a form of acquired brain injury, occurs when a sudden trauma causes damage to the brain. TBI can result when the head suddenly and violently hits an object, or when an object pierces the skull and enters brain tissue. Symptoms of a TBI can be mild, moderate, or severe, depending on the extent of the damage to the brain. A person with a mild TBI may remain conscious or may experience a loss of consciousness for a few seconds or minutes. Other symptoms of mild TBI include headache, confusion, lightheadedness, dizziness, blurred vision or tired eyes, ringing in the ears, bad taste in the mouth, fatigue or lethargy, a change in sleep patterns, behavioral or mood changes, and trouble with memory, concentration, attention, or thinking. A person with a moderate or severe TBI may show these same symptoms, but may also have a headache that gets worse or does not go away, repeated vomiting or nausea, convulsions or seizures, an inability to awaken from sleep, dilation of one or both pupils of the eyes, slurred speech, weakness or numbness in the extremities, loss of coordination, and increased confusion, restlessness, or agitation.

Breakthrough research suggests that female sex hormone may save lives on the battlefield

Breakthrough research suggests a female sex hormone may be the key to saving lives on the battlefield, where between 2001 and 2011 more than 80 percent of potentially preventable U.S. war injury deaths resulted from blood loss.

22 Oct 2015

Restoring memory in aging mice

A new study, led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), the Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System (VA) and University of California (UC) San Diego School of Medicine shows that increasing a crucial cholesterol-binding membrane protein in nerve cells (neurons) within the brain can improve learning and memory in aged mice.

22 Oct 2015

Advances in Whole Mount Brain Imaging

An interview with Patrick Myles, discussing the digitization of whole mount slides and its impact on the field of neurobiological research.

From Huron Technologies 20 Oct 2015

Developing tailored interventions for cognitive and behavioral symptoms key to improving outcomes after TBI

Kessler researchers assessed moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) for frontal behavioral syndromes and cognitive function. Their finding suggest that adding the Frontal Systems Behavior Scale to neuropsychological assessment may yield useful information about the behavioral sequelae of TBI.

15 Oct 2015

The Medical Center of Plano Partners with BIND, Brain Injury Network of Dallas to support survivors of traumatic brain injuries

Supporting patients who have suffered a serious brain injury is the goal of a new partnership between The Medical Center of Plano and the Brain Injury Network of Dallas, also called BIND.

15 Oct 2015

Females with mild closed-head brain injury more likely to misuse alcohol later in life

Girls who suffer a concussive bump on the head in childhood could be at increased risk for abusing alcohol as adults, a new study suggests.

13 Oct 2015

Single drop of blood in the brain can activate autoimmune response akin to multiple sclerosis

A new study from the Gladstone Institutes shows that a single drop of blood in the brain is sufficient to activate an autoimmune response akin to multiple sclerosis (MS). This is the first demonstration that introduction of blood in the healthy brain is sufficient to cause peripheral immune cells to enter the brain, which then go on to cause brain damage.

12 Oct 2015

Head injury patients do not benefit from brain cooling therapy

Head injury patients do not benefit from a therapy that involves cooling their bodies to reduce brain swelling, research has found.

8 Oct 2015

Researchers develop strategies to prevent pediatric head injuries from toppled TV sets

Researchers from the University of Toronto and St. Michael's Hospital (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) reviewed medical articles describing head injuries caused by toppled television sets in children 0 to 18 years of age. These injuries, which can be severe and sometimes fatal in small children, are often unwitnessed by adult caregivers, indicating a lack of awareness of the dangers posed to toddlers by TV sets that are not securely mounted.

29 Sep 2015

New app may help athletes identify possible concussion symptoms

Sports-related concussions have sparked a national debate, multiple lawsuits and new concussion-management protocols in the NCAA and NFL in the last few years. Despite all the attention to concussion and its risks, many student-athletes either don't recognize the signs of concussion -- or won't report them if they do.

28 Sep 2015

New study heightens concerns over detrimental impact of air pollution on gene associated with AD risk

A new study by researchers at the Universities of Montana, Valle de México, Boise State, and North Carolina, the Centro de Ciencias de la Atmósfera, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto Nacional de Pediatría, and Centro Médico Cozumel heightens concerns over the detrimental impact of air pollution on hippocampal metabolites as early markers of neurodegeneration in young urbanites carrying an allele 4 of the apolipoprotein E gene (APOE).

26 Sep 2015

Adult survivors of childhood posterior fossa brain tumors have low working memory

Adult survivors of childhood brain tumors have lower working memory performance compared to healthy adults, according to researchers at Georgia State University and Emory University.

24 Sep 2015

Spiritual beliefs may impact physical and mental health, MU study finds

Individuals who blame karma for their poor health have more pain and worse physical and mental health, according to a new study from University of Missouri researchers. Targeted interventions to counteract negative spiritual beliefs could help some individuals decrease pain and improve their overall health, the researchers said.

24 Sep 2015

Novel study provides new information on acute effects of TBI on cognition

Researchers published results of a novel study of the functional activation patterns of working memory after mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study, the first to enroll subjects during their initial evaluation in the emergency room, provides new information on the acute effects of TBI on cognition.

22 Sep 2015

Hypertension drugs block proteins that cause inflammation after traumatic brain injury

A new animal study shows that traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects the body as well as the brain and that treatment with hypertension drugs blocks the production of proteins related to inflammation.

21 Sep 2015

Former soldier Trevor Greene walks again with the help of exoskeleton at SFU's Surrey campus

Former Canadian soldier Trevor Greene, who survived a debilitating brain injury while on duty in Afghanistan in 2006, has recovered his ability to walk again with the help of a customized exoskeleton, his personal determination and support of researchers at Simon Fraser University.

21 Sep 2015

Modified Story Memory Technique improves memory in adults with moderate to severe TBI

Kessler Foundation researchers published results of a randomized clinical trial (RCT) of a cognitive intervention to improve learning and memory in individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) - the TBI-MEM trial.

11 Sep 2015

Riddell, TGen start third year of study to advance concussion treatment with ASU's football program

Riddell, the leader in football helmet technology and innovation, and the Translational Genomics Research Institute, a leader in cutting-edge genomic research, today announced they have begun the third year of a study to advance concussion detection and treatment with the Pac-12's Arizona State University and its Sun Devil football program.

10 Sep 2015

New $2.8 million NIH grant to help researchers find better treatments for hemorrhagic strokes

Developing better treatments and an improved understanding of the biology behind brain injury from hemorrhagic strokes is the main goal of a three-year $2.8 million grant to the Translational Genomics Research Institute, Phoenix Children's Hospital, and Barrow Neurological Institute.

9 Sep 2015

Botulinum toxin A improves muscle tone in hemiparesis

A single injection of abobotulinumtoxinA into upper limb muscles significantly reduces muscle tone in patients with hemiparesis following stroke or traumatic brain injury, study findings show.