If you have suffered concussions, skull fractures or scalp wounds, take extra care. A study has found that head injuries almost double a mans risk of developing dementia. Researchers from the University of Maryland in the US showed that the inflammation caused by traumatic brain injury can spread and cause long-lasting damage. The findings indicated that the risk is particularly high for men aged between 41 and 56. This could help guide treatment of the injuries, whose severity is often difficult to gauge. They also found that exposing the inflammatory microparticles to a compound called PEG-TB could neutralize them. This opens up the possibility of using that compound or others to treat traumatic brain injury (TBI), and perhaps even other neurodegenerative diseases. A growing swell of research has shown that chronic inflammation leads to progressive cell loss after TBI. To investigate the lingering impact of inflammation, lead researcher Alan Faden focused on microparticles produced by inflammatory brain cells. The results suggested that microparticles can activate normal immune cells, making them potentially toxic to brain neurons. The results potentially provide a new conceptual framework for understanding brain inflammation and its relationship to brain cell loss and neurological deficits after head injury … Continue reading →

In recent years, the Department of Veterans Affairs has come under intense scrutiny and heavy criticism for a variety of reasons. My experience with the VA, however, has been nothing but positive. I was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease 13 years ago. My service in the Army during the Vietnam War qualified me for drug trials at the comprehensive Parkinsons disease center at the McGuire VA hospital in Richmond. McGuire is one of seven of the 162 VA hospitals in the nation to have such a program. Specialists in movement disorder diseases who have treated me have helped slow the progression of my Parkinsons, which has allowed me to live a relatively normal life. One factor that helps explain my good fortune is something I began to notice early in my visits to McGuire: the large number of medical personnel holding joint positions with McGuire and VCU. I had assumed that all personnel at veterans hospitals practiced exclusively for the VA. I have subsequently learned that the presence of VCU clinicians represents one of the most comprehensive academic health partnerships in American history, a cooperative arrangement that began as a result of World War II. *** Following the Allied victory in … Continue reading →

NATWEST T20 BLAST, 2017 Cricbuzz StaffLast updated on Sun, 09 Jul, 2017, 07:24 AM Luke Fletcher was hit by the ball on his follow through Getty Nottinghamshire pacer Luke Fletcher suffered a head injury during the NatWest T20 Blast match against Warwickshire and was taken to a hospital for medical attention. According to initial reports, it emerged that the injury was of a serious nature and play was suspended for more than 30 minutes before it resumed. The incident took place in the fourth over during Warwickshire's chase. Fletcher, who was bowling the over, had no time to react to a powerful straight drive from Sam Hain and was struck on his head. Immediately after the blow, Fletcher was seen wrapping up his head in a towel while walking off the field. As the umpires immediately called for medical assistance, the pacer appeared conscious while being assisted off the field by the physio and was later taken to a hospital. Soon after, Notts released a statement which read: Luke Fletcher has been taken to hospital to assess the extent of the head injury. He was able to walk off the field of play and, after receiving treatment from the medical … Continue reading →