For the first 20 milesof the ride up the Col du Galibierthe storied Alpine climb that debuted in the Tour de France back in 1911, when all but three riders were forced to dismount and walk their chunky pre-carbon-fiber velocipedes to the 8,000-foot summitI was actually enjoying myself, more or less. The other cyclists on my weeklong tour had decided to bag it and hop in the support van halfway up the climb, as the temperature began to plummet and a cold rain swept down from the surrounding peaks Continue reading →

It's a very early report, from just two patients, only a few months after treatment. But UMass Medical School Dean Terence Flotte this week shared at a conference what could be landmark news about a terrible genetic disease: Two young patients with Tay-Sachs disease showed no ill effects from a new gene therapy that aims to correct the defect at the heart of the disease. Continue reading →

A charity worker suffered a cardiac arrest and later died after taking cocaine at a car park in Cornwall. Charlotte Martin, 41, who lived with her mother and step-father in Fore Street, Tregony, died on Monday, February 25, two days after she had a seizure in the passenger seat of her partners car in Priory Road car park, St Austell Continue reading →

WASHINGTON The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) launched the Long-Term Impact of Military-related Brain Injury Consortium (LIMBIC) Oct. 1, for which the two organizations pledged to fund up to $50 million, to research mild traumatic brain injuries (TBI) or concussions Continue reading →

A TEENAGER tried to take his own life after he was left unstimulated with a brain injury in a nursing home. The wheelchair-bound lad, 18, is one of 900 young people with brain injuries who are currently being forced to live in old folks homes around the country Continue reading →

A Scarborough man who had a 30 per centchance of survival after being hit by a speeding car has been shortlisted for a national award for his efforts to help prevent accidents on the road. Continue reading →

Our understanding of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), until now, is that it is a mental health disorder that occurs as a consequence of exposure to extreme, life-threatening stress, and/or serious injury. This exposure, by definition, is requisite for the development of PTSD, but not all those who face trauma necessarily develop it the individual susceptibility to PTSD varies widely. Since the turn of the century, scientists have been trying to find evidence for genetic influence on PTSD risk, with the last decade witnessing concerted efforts to identify specific DNA variants that can influence ones genetic susceptibility to develop PTSD. Continue reading →