Category Archives: Brain Injury Treatment

5 hours ago Researchers from the Biomedical Engineering Department of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey recently demonstrated the use of their "Brain-on-a-Chip" microsystem to assess specific effects of traumatic axonal injury. While their model uses the three dimensional cell structure and networks found in intact animals, it is capable of visualizing individual axons and their responses to mechanical injury. This is done by utilizing organotypic slices taken from specific areas in the brain that are susceptible to injury during a traumatic brain injury event. "What's really nice about the system is that it is very versatile, in that specific physiologically relevant pathways or networks can be monitored depending on the orientation of the slices placed in the device, or by which brain slices are used," says Jean-Pierre Doll, Ph.D, lead author. Through the use of very small microchannels, the authors direct the natural response of brain slices to extend axons to connect one brain slice to another. Once the extending axons have traversed the distance and made functional connections between the brain slices, these axons are ready to be selectively injured. This innovative approach was used to characterize the biochemical changes that are induced following traumatic axonal injury … Continue reading →

Study finds even mild injury can cause brain damage 9:13pm Wednesday 16th July 2014 in News EVEN mild traumatic brain injury may cause thinking and memory problems, according to new research by North-East academics. The study, carried out by Newcastle University and published in the American journal Neurology, saw 44 people with a mild traumatic brain injury and nine people with a moderate traumatic brain injury compared to 33 people with no brain injury. The patients, who had all been treated by the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, had suffered various accidents, including falling from bicycles with no helmet, falling from ladders doing jobs around the home, slipping and falling while just going about their daily life, being involved in motor vehicle accidents or being assaulted. They needed hospital attention but were treated and discharged either on the day of their injury or following a few days of observation and treatment in hospital. All participants were tested on their thinking and memory skills. At the same time, they had a type of MRI scan that is better at detecting damage to brain cells. The people with brain injuries had their scans an average of six days after they suffered the … Continue reading →

A long-term study reveals how the brain responds to a mild impact, and could guide future intervention Credit: Rugby Streaming/flickr At Sundays World Cup Final, German soccer player Christoph Kramer knocked his head against an Argentine opponents shoulder with such force that Kramer spun to the ground and fell face down. The blow was one of many at this years competition, which further fueled a rising debate about concussion, the damages of ftbol versus football and the best response to head injuries. Part of the challenge in understanding these injuries is how varied they can be. Although much attention has gone to severe forms of traumatic brain injury (TBI) such as concussion-induced coma, far more common are the milder impacts that come from falling off a bicycle, a low-speed car accident or taking a weak punch in a fistfight. These injuries may not entail losing consciousness but rather just a brief lack in responsiveness before recovering. Now a group of researchers in the U.K. at Newcastle University, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh have released results of a longer-term investigation of individuals who have suffered such first-time, minor head injuries. Their findings hint that the contusions leave … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 15-Jul-2014 Contact: Meng Zhao eic@nrren.org 86-138-049-98773 Neural Regeneration Research The brain has a low renewable capacity for self-repair and generation of new functional neurons in the treatment of trauma, inflammation and cerebral diseases. Cytotherapy is one option to regenerate central nervous system that aim at replacing the functional depleted cells due to traumatic brain injury (TBI). Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) are also considered a candidate for cytotherapy because they can differentiate into neurons/nerve cells, pass across blood-brain barrier, migrate into the injured region, secrete neurotrophic factor, and provide microenvironment for neural regeneration. Prof. Mohammad Ali Khalili, Research and Clinical Center for Infertility, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Iran and his team administered TBI rats 3106 BMSCs via the tail vein and found that the BMSCs transplanted via the tail vein promoted nerve cell regeneration in injured cerebral cortex, which supplement the lost nerve cells. Related results were published in Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 9, No. 9, 2014). Article: " Intravenous transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells promotes neural regeneration after traumatic brain injury" by Fatemeh Anbari1, Mohammad Ali Khalili1, Ahmad Reza Bahrami2, Arezoo Khoradmehr1, Fatemeh Sadeghian1, Farzaneh Fesahat1, Ali Nabi1 (1 Research and … Continue reading →

Contact Information Available for logged-in reporters only Newswise TORONTO, July 17, 2014 A study published today found that almost 40 per cent of Ontario female prisoners have a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Unlike the men participating in the study, half of these women sustained a TBI before committing their first crime. The study, led by Dr. Angela Colantonio, senior scientist, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, was based on a survey of men and women in Ontario correctional facilities. Published in the Journal of Correctional Health Care, it is the first Canadian study of its kind. Typically caused by a blow to the head, TBI is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. It kills 11,000 Canadians every year. TBI is commonly caused by falls, motor vehicle collisions,physical assault or sports injuries. We observed a striking gender difference. Female inmates with a TBI, compared to males, were much more likely to have suffered physical or sexual abuse as children, said Colantonio, Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Research Chair in Gender, Work, and Health, University of Toronto. Our research suggests the need to screen offenders and others with a history of abuse for TBI. Dr. Colantonio highlights the need to … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 15-Jul-2014 Contact: Natasha De Veauuse Brown ndeveauusebrown@gsu.edu 404-413-3602 Georgia State University A team of researchers at the Neuroscience Institute at Georgia State University has discovered that hidden differences in the properties of neural circuits can account for whether animals are behaviorally susceptible to brain injury. These results could have implications for the treatment of brain trauma. People vary in their responses to stroke and trauma, which impedes the ability of physicians to predict patient outcomes. Damage to the brain and nervous system can lead to severe disabilities, including epilepsy and cognitive impairment. If doctors could predict outcomes with greater accuracy, patients might benefit from more tailored treatments. Unfortunately, the complexity of the human brain hinders efforts to explain why similar brain damage can affect each person differently. The researchers used a unique research animal, a sea slug called Tritonia diomedea, to study this question. This animal was used because unlike humans, it has a small number of neurons and its behavior is simple. Despite this simplicity, the animals varied in how neurons were connected. Under normal conditions, this variability did not matter to the animals' behavior, but when a major pathway in the brain was severed, some … Continue reading →

A TOOWOOMBA family will soon know if a revolutionary treatment is going to lift the fog shrouding 26-year-old Joel Shepherd's mind. His sister Susan Graham-Ryan will fly with Mr Shepherd, their mum Coralie Graham, brother Kris and one of Mr Shepherd's carers to Los Angeles on Sunday. On Monday, Mr Shepherd is due to undergo reverse stroke treatment, which will hopefully reduce inflammation caused by a brain injury he acquired when he was three-and-a-half years old. Funding the perispinal etanercept treatment has been a huge undertaking. WHAT'S HOT ONLINE "Mum had to get a big remortgage of the house to cover the cost of it," Mrs Graham-Ryan said. But the burden has been eased by community members, some complete strangers, who have generously donated money to help fund the treatment. "It has just been amazing and overwhelming at the same time," Mrs Graham-Ryan said. A drug used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis will be injected into a large blood vessel at the base of Mr Shepherd's neck. He will then be suspended upside down to ensure the drug stays in the area it is intended to repair. See the article here: Hopes radical treatment will heal brain damage … Continue reading →

(PRWEB) July 15, 2014 A team of researchers at the Neuroscience Institute at Georgia State University has discovered that hidden differences in the properties of neural circuits can account for whether animals are behaviorally susceptible to brain injury. These results could have implications for the treatment of brain trauma. People vary in their responses to stroke and trauma, which impedes the ability of physicians to predict patient outcomes. Damage to the brain and nervous system can lead to severe disabilities, including epilepsy and cognitive impairment. If doctors could predict outcomes with greater accuracy, patients might benefit from more tailored treatments. Unfortunately, the complexity of the human brain hinders efforts to explain why similar brain damage can affect each person differently. The researchers used a unique research animal, a sea slug called Tritonia diomedea, to study this question. This animal was used because unlike humans, it has a small number of neurons and its behavior is simple. Despite this simplicity, the animals varied in how neurons were connected. Under normal conditions, this variability did not matter to the animals behavior, but when a major pathway in the brain was severed, some of the animals showed little behavioral deficit, while others could … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 15-Jul-2014 Contact: LaTina Emerson lemerson1@gsu.edu 404-413-1353 Georgia State University ATLANTAA team of researchers at the Neuroscience Institute at Georgia State University has discovered that hidden differences in the properties of neural circuits can account for whether animals are behaviorally susceptible to brain injury. These results could have implications for the treatment of brain trauma. People vary in their responses to stroke and trauma, which impedes the ability of physicians to predict patient outcomes. Damage to the brain and nervous system can lead to severe disabilities, including epilepsy and cognitive impairment. If doctors could predict outcomes with greater accuracy, patients might benefit from more tailored treatments. Unfortunately, the complexity of the human brain hinders efforts to explain why similar brain damage can affect each person differently. The researchers used a unique research animal, a sea slug called Tritonia diomedea, to study this question. This animal was used because unlike humans, it has a small number of neurons and its behavior is simple. Despite this simplicity, the animals varied in how neurons were connected. Under normal conditions, this variability did not matter to the animals' behavior, but when a major pathway in the brain was severed, some of the … Continue reading →

More than a week after North Carolina man Brandon Yam was struck in the head by a stray bullet, causing traumatic brain injury, he is being transferred Wednesday to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta for treatment. Yam, who is recovering slowly, is looking forward to returning to Atlanta where he lived until his marriage, not only to the specialized treatment he will receive at the Center, but also to being closer to his Atlanta-based family. He is kind of depressed because of the whole thing, the whole situation. He is looking forward to going to Atlanta, said sister Chenda Yam Wilson. He said Chenda, when are we going? And he keeps asking what time. Wilson said she thinks the Shepherd Center will be the best place for her brother and, for now, his wife and children have relocated to Atlanta to be there for him. There is no doubt about it and he is very determined to work as hard as he can, she said. Yam was shot the night of the 4th of July at the Cambodian Buddhist Temple in Charlotte. Yams family, originally from Cambodia, is still almost entirely based in Atlanta, and asked to get him transferred … Continue reading →