By ALISON DORF Published January 17, 2013 at 2:59am Updated January 17, 2013 at 2:59am A statewide collaboration is furthering the treatment of traumatic brain injuries within Arizona. The National Institutes of Health chose Arizona as the only state to evaluate the national standards for pre-hospital emergency care of traumatic brain injury, according to an Arizona Department of Health Services news release. Some attribute this success in treating severe brain injuries to the Excellence in Pre-hospital Injury Care, or EPIC, program. The UA College of Medicine is currently involved with EPIC, which is the only project of its kind in the country. It is a major collaboration between the Arizona Department of Health Services, the UA, Arizona Fire Departments and EMS agencies. Through EPIC, it is possible to track how its guidelines are helping patients by collecting data from paramedics and EMTs, and linking it to the Arizona State Trauma Registry. It is then possible to determine different scenarios for patients, including survival, length of stay in the hospital and cost, according to Dr. Ben Bobrow, medical director at the Bureau of EMS and Trauma System and a professor of emergency medicine at the UA College of Medicine on the … Continue reading →

Jan. 16, 2013 For the first time, scientists at Carnegie Mellon University's Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging (CCBI) have used a new combination of neural imaging methods to discover exactly how the human brain adapts to injury. The research, published in Cerebral Cortex, shows that when one brain area loses functionality, a "back-up" team of secondary brain areas immediately activates, replacing not only the unavailable area but also its confederates. "The human brain has a remarkable ability to adapt to various types of trauma, such as traumatic brain injury and stroke, making it possible for people to continue functioning after key brain areas have been damaged," said Marcel Just, the D. O. Hebb Professor of Psychology at CMU and CCBI director. "It is now clear how the brain can naturally rebound from injuries and gives us indications of how individuals can train their brains to be prepared for easier recovery. The secret is to develop alternative thinking styles, the way a switch-hitter develops alternative batting styles. Then, if a muscle in one arm is injured, they can use the batting style that relies more on the uninjured arm." For the study, Just, Robert Mason, senior research psychologist at CMU, and … Continue reading →

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- InfraScan, a medical device company specializing in brain injury diagnostic products, announced today that it has obtained U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to market the Infrascanner Model 2000, a noninvasive handheld brain hematoma detector. The Infrascanner Model 2000 is a handheld device with a disposable patient interface that uses Near-Infrared (NIR) technology to detect intracranial bleeding, identifying those patients who would most benefit from immediate referral to a CT scan and neurosurgical intervention. FDA approval in the U.S. allows InfraScan to offer an industry first, powerful tool for use by civilian and military medical professionals to quickly triage head trauma patients, said Baruch Ben Dor, President and CEO of InfraScan, Inc. Shortening the time to treatment through effective detection of intracranial bleeding can mean preserving brain function in a patient and even saving lives. The Infrascanner Model 2000 was developed in partnership with U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The Model 2000 features upgrades that meet the specifications of the U.S. Marine Corps and is a ruggedized, integrated, user-friendly unit. Before the Infrascanner, first responders had to rely on imprecise methods to detect brain bleeds in patients, potentially delaying treatment, said Dr. Joseph Maroon, Professor and Vice Chairman … Continue reading →