Category Archives: Brain Injury Treatment

Public release date: 3-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Press Office pressinfo@ki.se 46-852-486-077 Karolinska Institutet In a study in mice, scientists at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered a new potential therapy that may reduce brain damage following stroke in type 2 diabetic patients. The suggested drug is already approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. However, the scientists hope that this new results, presented in the scientific journal Diabetes, also opens up the possibility to decrease brain injury after stroke in other patient groups with a high stroke risk. Stroke is when part of the neural tissue in the brain is damaged due to lack of oxygen delivery, either caused by a blood clot (thrombosis) or rupture of a blood vessel. People suffering from diabetes are at higher risk to develop stroke than the average population. The only acute treatment to decrease the consequences (disability) of a stroke commonly available is thrombolysis, which dissolves the blood clot in the occluded vessels of the brain when quickly administered after onset of symptoms. However, this therapy is only available for approximately 10 per cent of stroke patients and has potential severe side effects, mainly brain hemorrhage. Furthermore, the … Continue reading →

ANDOVER, Mass., Dec. 3, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dynamics Research Corporation (DRCO), a leading provider of innovative management consulting, engineering, science and technology solutions to federal and state governments, today announced it has been awarded two new task order contracts to support the Military Health System's Defense Centers of Excellence with a combined value of $19.3 million. Under the first task order, DRC was awarded a $4.4 million contract with a period of performance of two years to identify and develop psychological health and traumatic brain injury treatment best practices. Under the second task order, the company was awarded a $14.9 million contract with a period of performance of one base year and four option years. DRC is tasked with documenting the results of psychological health and traumatic brain injury clinical and non-clinical programs, supporting clinical conferences and providing technical assistance programs. "We are thrilled to have the opportunity to leverage our clinical health expertise to support this valued customer," said Jim Regan, DRC's chairman and chief executive officer. "DRC is leading the charge in the development of innovative approaches to delivering safe, effective, and value-driven care for government health organizations." The Defense Centers of Excellence were established in 2007 … Continue reading →

Jim Regan, CEO of Dynamics Research Corp., which got $19 million in two contracts from Tricares Evaluation, Analysis, Management and Support program. Dynamics Research Corp. (Nasdaq:DRCO) in Andover has been tasked with developing best practices for traumatic brain injury treatment and psychological orders. The Andover-based company was awarded two contracts worth $19.3 million. The task orders are for DRC to come up with best practices and provide technical assistance in traumatic brain and psychological treatment for the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, which include the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, Deployment Health Clinical Center and National Center for Telehealth and Technology. On average, approximately 1.7 million people sustain a traumatic brain injury annually, according to 2010 Center for Disease Control and Prevention data. The contracts were awarded under Tricares Evaluation, Analysis, Management and Support program, or TEAMS, contract, the company said Monday. Under the first, two-year, $4.4 million contract, DRC will provide best practices. Under the one-year, $14.9 million contract, which includes a four-year option, DRC will document the results of the clinical and non-clinical programs, support conferences and provide technical assistance. DRC is leading the charge in the development of innovative approaches … Continue reading →

Background Outcomes after traumatic brain injury are worsened by secondary insults; modern intensive-care units address such challenges through use of best-practice pathways. Organisation of intensive-care units has an important role in pathway effectiveness. We aimed to assess the effect of a paediatric neurocritical care programme (PNCP) on outcomes for children with severe traumatic brain injury. We undertook a retrospective cohort study of 123 paediatric patients with severe traumatic brain injury (Glasgow coma scale scores 8, without gunshot or abusive head trauma, cardiac arrest, or Glasgow coma scale scores of 3 with fixed and dilated pupils) admitted to the paediatric intensive-care unit of the St Louis Children's Hospital (St Louis, MO, USA) between July 15, 1999, and Jan 15, 2012. The primary outcome was rate of categorised hospital discharge disposition before and after implementation of a PNCP on Sept 17, 2005. We developed an ordered probit statistical model to assess adjusted outcome as a function of initial injury severity. We assessed care-team behaviour by comparing timing of invasive neuromonitoring and scored intensity of therapies targeting intracranial hypertension. Characteristics of treated patients (aged 3219 months) were much the same between treatment periods. Before PNCP implementation, 33 (52%) of 63 patients had unfavourable … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (Nov. 26, 2012) Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Montefiore Medical Center have found that a special magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique may be able to predict which patients who have experienced concussions will improve. The results, which were presented November 26 at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), suggest that, in some patients, the brain may change to compensate for the damage caused by the injury. "This finding could lead to strategies for preventing and repairing the damage that accompanies traumatic brain injury," said Michael Lipton, M.D., Ph.D., who led the study and is associate director of the Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center at Einstein and medical director of MRI services at Montefiore, the University Hospital and academic medical center for Einstein. Each year, 1.7 million people in the U.S., sustain traumatic brain injuries (TBI), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Concussions and other mild TBIs (or mTBIs) account for at least 75 percent of these injuries. Following a concussion, some patients experience a brief loss of consciousness. Other symptoms include headache, dizziness, memory loss, attention deficit, depression and anxiety. Some of these conditions may … Continue reading →

Public release date: 26-Nov-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Kim Newman sciencenews@einstein.yu.edu 718-430-3101 Albert Einstein College of Medicine November 26, 2012 (BRONX, NY) Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Montefiore Medical Center have found that a special magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique may be able to predict which patients who have experienced concussions will improve. The results, which were presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), suggest that, in some patients, the brain may change to compensate for the damage caused by the injury. "This finding could lead to strategies for preventing and repairing the damage that accompanies traumatic brain injury," said Michael Lipton, M.D., Ph.D., who led the study and is associate director of the Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center at Einstein and medical director of MRI services at Montefiore, the University Hospital and academic medical center for Einstein. Each year, 1.7 million people in the U.S., sustain traumatic brain injuries (TBI), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Concussions and other mild TBIs (or mTBIs) account for at least 75 percent of these injuries. Following a concussion, some patients experience a brief … Continue reading →

Public release date: 26-Nov-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Linda Brooks lbrooks@rsna.org 630-590-7762 Radiological Society of North America CHICAGO Using a special magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique to image patients with mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), researchers have identified a biomarker that may predict which patients will do well over the long term, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). The results of the study showed that in some patients the brain may have changed to compensate for the damage caused by the injury. "This finding has huge potential implications for preventing and repairing the damage that accompanies traumatic brain injury," said Michael Lipton, M.D., Ph.D., associate director of the Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and medical director of MRI at the Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, N.Y. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, each year in the U.S. 1.7 million people sustain traumatic brain injuries. MTBI, or concussion, accounts for at least 75 percent of all traumatic brain injuries. Following a concussion, some patients experience a brief loss of consciousness. Other symptoms include headache, dizziness, memory loss, … Continue reading →

Leading experts in research, treatment and rehabilitation will be presenting at the 2012 Pediatric Brain Injury Conference, to be held on Thursday, Nov. 29, at the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel in Marlborough. Sponsored by the Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts (BIA-MA) in conjunction with the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission, Spaulding Rehabilitation Network, Wingate Healthcare and Braintree & New England Rehabilitation Hospitals, the conference is intended for medical professionals, teachers, coaches, parents, family members and others. Douglas Katz, M.D., director of the Acquired Brain Injury Program and Medical Education at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital, will present the keynote address on pharmacological intervention in pediatric brain injury. Pediatrician Greg Parkinson and his wife Sandra Parkinson, a physical therapist, will co-present the plenary address, A New Normal: Reinventing Yourself after a Head Injury. A Survivor Perspectives panel will be a new addition to this years workshop offerings. Attendees will hear firsthand how a childs world and the family dynamic are changed following a brain injury, according to organizers. Brain injury is the leading cause of death and disability in children and adolescents, said Arlene Korab, executive director of BIA-MA. Parents, teachers and medical professionals need to know about the new research and advances in … Continue reading →

Supplement fails to prove effective in recovery November 25, 2012 2:00 AM CHICAGO The hunt for brain injury treatments has suffered a big disappointment in a major study that found zero benefits from a supplement that the U.S. military had hoped would help wounded troops. The supplement is marketed as a memory booster online and in over-the-counter powders and drinks. It is also widely used by doctors in dozens of countries to treat traumatic brain injuries and strokes, although evidence on whether it works has been mixed. U.S. scientists had high hopes that in large doses it would help speed recovery in patients with brain injuries from car crashes, falls, sports accidents and other causes. But in the most rigorous test yet, citicoline (see-tee-KOH'-leen) worked no better than dummy treatments at reducing forgetfulness, attention problems, difficulty concentrating and other symptoms. "We very much were disappointed," said Dr. Ross Zafonte, the lead author and a traumatic brain injury expert at Harvard Medical School. "We took a therapy that is utilized worldwide and we found that at least its present use should be called into question." The study involved 1,213 patients aged 18 and older hospitalized at eight U.S. trauma centers. They … Continue reading →

The hunt for brain injury treatments has suffered a big disappointment in a major study that found zero benefits from a supplement that the U.S. military had hoped would help wounded troops. The supplement is marketed as a memory booster online and in over-the-counter powders and drinks. It is also widely used by doctors in dozens of countries to treat traumatic brain injuries and strokes, although evidence on whether it works has been mixed. U.S. scientists had high hopes that in large doses it would help speed recovery in patients with brain injuries from car crashes, falls, sports accidents and other causes. But in the most rigorous test yet, citicoline (see-tee-KOH'-leen) worked no better than dummy treatments at reducing forgetfulness, attention problems, difficulty concentrating and other symptoms. "We very much were disappointed," said Dr. Ross Zafonte, the lead author and a traumatic brain injury expert at Harvard Medical School. "We took a therapy that is utilized worldwide and we found that at least its present use should be called into question." The study involved 1,213 patients aged 18 and older hospitalized at eight U.S. trauma centers. They had mild to severe traumatic brain injuries - blows to the head resulting … Continue reading →