Traumatic Brain Injury: May 2007 Archives

Skull Implant

The skull often is broken when a severe head injury occurs. Parts of the skull bone can press into the brain and pierce the brain tissue. Injured brain tissue can also swell or bleed. Loss of oxygen to a part of the brain can cause that area of the brain to die. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 1.4 million traumatic brain injuries occur each year in the United States. About 235,000 of these people are hospitalized and 50,000 die. In children under the age of 14, TBIs lead to 37,000 hospitalizations and 2,685 deaths.

Skull Implant

However, advances in medical technology offer promising new treatments for those affected by traumatic brain injuries. Four-year-old Jack Stapleton fell from a boat in 2004 and severely injured his brain. Doctors did not expect that he would survive, but Jack defied the odds and began to show signs of recovery. This confronted doctors with a new problem: the fall had destroyed a large part of Jack's skull and they would need to replace a part of the lost skull to protect the brain. Because Jack was not big enough that bone from another part of his body could be transplanted into the skull, doctors had to use man-made materials to fill the gap. While Jack still requires medical monitoring, his skull now is intact.

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Accomodating an Employee with a TBI

The United States Office of Disability Employment Policy says that about 1.4 million occurrences of traumatic brain injury occur each year. Employers with workers who suffer from traumatic brain injury can face problems. The limitation placed on a worker from his or her injury is determined by how severe the injury is. Those with visual problems can be accommodated with better lighting, for example.

Accomodating an Employee With A Traumatic Brain Injury

A traumatic brain injury is any injury that is caused by trauma to the head. It can be caused by a concussion or a skull fracture that is caused by a hit to the head. Brain injury also can be caused by bleeding or bruising of the brain; in this case, there is no outward appearance of injury. TBI can lead to problem-solving deficits, difficulty in stamina, problems with handling stress, and even consistently showing up to work.

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Hypothermia TBI Treatment Trials Begin

The Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh plans to lead a $11.5 million National Institutes of Health-funded clinical trial that will look at induced hypothermia as a treatment for brain swelling in children who have suffered from traumatic brain injuries.

Clinical Trial of Hypothermia To Treat Pediatric Brain Injury

Research will be conducted at 12 sites throughout the country. 340 children up to the age of 16 will be enrolled in the five-year, Phase III randomized trial. A Phase II study of induced hypothermia discovered that the therapy is safe and has potential to improve outcome. P. David Adelson, who lead the Phase II study and who also will lead the Phase III study, says that hypothermia treatment is showing promise as a treatment. "We've proven this therapy is safe. Now if we can determine that it is effective, it would be a major breakthrough because currently there are very limited treatments that improve outcome following traumatic brain injury in children," Dr. Adelson said. "The belief is that cooling impacts the cascade of events that leads to brain swelling. Reducing brain swelling potentially could prevent further injury."

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Brain Injury Victims "Stuck" In Nursing Homes

The Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts and four others have filed a class action lawsuit against Governor Deval Patrick and other state officials. The plaintiffs say that the state has violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by "unnecessary and prolonged institutionalization" of those with brain injuries. The lawsuit says that over 8,000 brain injury victims in Massachusetts live in commonwealth rehabilitation facilities, but a quarter of those could live facility-free if support was available.

Brain Injury Victims "Stuck" In Nursing Homes

Richard Johnston, an attorney for the plaintiffs in the case, says that the state is in violation of the Americans with Disabilities act because states may not "force people with disabilities to live in nursing homes, as Massachusetts presently does, in order to get the services they need."

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Brain Injury Survivor Raises Awareness

Daniel Windheim, 44, is a survivor of a traumatic brain injury. He recently has written a book called "It's Not All Black And White: A Survivor's View Of Life." Windheim was 16 years old when he suffered his traumatic brain injury. He was a passenger in a car driven by his sister's boyfriend when the car was involved in an accident. Windheim suffered a brain-stem injury that caused him to be in a coma for more than two months.

href="http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070504/NEWS03/705040385/1019/SPECIAL02">A Brain Injury Survivor Raises Awareness Through His Book

Despite having to relearn how to walk after his injury, Windheim was able to finish his high school education, and got a bachelor's degree from St. Thomas Aquinas College. The book is about Daniel Windheim's life in the days prior to his accident and offers perspective on how he, his family, and his friends handled his injury and recovery. Windheim hopes his book will inspire other TBI victims to move on with their lives: "TBI survivors are conditioned to believe that they are incompetent, but I'm capable," Windheim said. "You have to constantly remind yourself that you are not different from others."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 12:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Pediatricians and Pathologists Have TBI Differently

Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine have found that when pediatricians and pathologists were given the same hypothetical situations, they came to different conclusions over half the time about whether the death should be investigated as a child abuse case. The study shows that more uniform standards must be established to help prevent abuse.

Pediatricians and Pathologists See Traumatic Brain Injury Differently

Traumatic brain injury is the main cause of death in abused children. It is most common in children under the age of four. About fifteen hundred children a year in the United States are killed because of traumatic brain injury and those who do not die of their injuries often suffer permanent effects. Antoinette Laskey, M.D., M.P.H., a researcher involved in the study, said of the research: "We have to understand abusive head trauma. Research in the field is in its infancy compared to what we know about other pediatric conditions. We need to increase both the volume and the quality of what we know. We need to know more and we can't until we have pediatricians and pathologists, the doctors who see these children, speaking the same language."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Does Calcium Cause Brain Damage?

Research suggests that the calcium in diary products may cause brain damage. Calcium can narrow blood vessels in the brain, which leads to dementia in the elderly. Additionally, vitamin D, which also is found in dairy products, may exacerbate the problem. The study discovered that those who were between the ages of 60 and 86 who ate the most calcium and vitamin D had more damaged tissue in their brains.

Calcium "Causes Brain Damage"

The age and blood pressure of the subjects involved in the study did not affect test results. While damaged tissue usually is found in the brains of old people, too much damage increases the risk of stroke and dementia. Researchers say that the lesions could be caused when bone-like calcium deposits clog blood vessels; this makes it more difficult for blood to reach the brain. Researcher Dr. Martha Payne, from Duke University, said that "a growing number of researchers are concerned about the effects of too much calcium, given the emphasis on promoting high intakes."

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Crash Victim Doing Well After Accident

Thirty-year-old Shannon Malloy's head became separated from her spine when she was thrown against her car's dashboard in a crash. However, despite Malloy's severe injuries, the nerves, muscles, and ligaments in her neck survived. Doctors described her injuries as an "internal decapitation;" Malloy's skull was knocked completely from the top of her spinal column.

Decapitated Woman Doing Well After Crash

In addition to her neck injury, Malloy suffered a fractured skull, bleeding in her brain, and damage to the nerves of her eyes. Her throat and air passages also were so severely damaged that she has to be fed through a tube into her stomach and only can speak in short bursts. Malloy says of the accident: "I remember the impact and then I had no control over my head. I wasn't focused so much on the pain. I just kept thinking, I have to stay alive." During the surgery to reattach her head, she said, "My skull slipped off my neck about five times. Every time they tried to screw this halo to my head, my skull would slip backwards or sideways."

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Damaged Brain Able to Rapidly Recover

In stroke victims, activity in undamaged parts of the brain increases. This effect is especially recognizable in patients struggling in their recoveries. It is not clear if this effect is a cause or an effects of slow recovery. Researchers lead by Dr. Jacinta O'Shea at the Department of Experimental Psychology and the Center for Functional MRI of the Brain investigated the phenomena by stimulating brain damage in healthy volunteers and having them perform various tasks.

The brain can rapidly reorganize to recover from damage

After brain damage was simulated, participants were slower at choosing the correct response. However, after several minutes, performance was back to normal. Dr. O'Shea said that this "suggested to us that the brain might have reorganized itself to compensate for the interference."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Boxers Face Brain Injury

It should come as no surprise that boxing batters the bodies of those participating in the sport. However, many do not realize the toll that boxing takes on the brain. Continual hits to the head can cause severe speech problems, tremors, and a loss of motor control. Famed boxers like Muhammad Ali and Jerry Quarry show the effects. While amateur boxers are at a lower risk for head injuries because they wear protective headgear, shock-absorbing gloves, and go fewer rounds, brain trauma still occurs in casual boxers.

Risking It In The Ring

Dr. Max Albert Hietala, a neurologist with the Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, says that "the brain is not made for hitting upon. And it's not protected well enough, even if you have headgear." Hietala's study, as well as many past studies, have provided evidence that cognitive damage occurs in amateur boxers.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 08:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Champagne Protects Brain Cells

A recent report suggests that drinking champagne responsibly could positively affect one's brain health. Champagne contains high amounts of polyphenols; polyphenols can help protect the brain against injuries caused by strokes and brain injuries. The study's authors say that "there has been much recent interest in the potential of plant-derived polyphenols to protect against neuronal injury."

Champagne Protects Brain Cells From Injury, Study Finds

Polyphenols are recognized antioxidants. Antioxidants are thought to help prevent cell death caused by oxidative stresses. They are found in greater concentrations in champagne than in wine. Researchers found that "pretreatment with champagne wine extracts resulted in significant protection against neurotoxicity."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 11:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Baby Died of Brain Injury

A pathologist in the case of a three-year-old New Zealand boy who died of a a brain injury says that the boy died of a brain injury he got 5-10 days before his death. The boy's mother and his stepfather currently are on trial for his death. The boy died on February 1 last year.

Otara Toddler Died of Brain Injury

The court has been told that the boy was beaten because he soiled himself. Last week, the court was told that the boy died because of the effects of extensive soft tissue injury. However, the assertion that the boy died of an injury received 5-10 days before his death would throw the parents' guilt into doubt.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 10:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Iraq Brain Injuries Focus of Bill

A bill that would establish a special panel in the Department of Veterans Affairs for soldier brain injuries. The Caring for Veterans With Traumatic Brain Injury Act of 2007 says that a panel needs to assess the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' ability to treat brain-injured veterans make recommendations on new policies for care and rehabilitation.

Troop Brain Injuries Focus of Bill

The Pentagon says that up to one-third of Iraq veterans have been exposed to explosive devices during their tenure in Iraq; the impact of these devices detonating is enough to cause brain injury. Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Pleasanton, says that the bill is needed because: "(Traumatic brain injury) is pretty significant: Half of our injuries are TBI-related now. I know they have good treatment, but there are a lot that have minor TBI. Basically, we wanted to get out ahead of this issue and give the (VA) secretary some guidance on this issue."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 10:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A Reminder to Cyclists to Wear Helmets

The Williams Lake RCMP is worried about the number of people riding bikes without wearing bicycle helmets. A person riding a bicycle is at a significantly higher risk of head injury if a helmet is not worn. RCMP Cariboo Chilcotin Traffic Services Corp. Mel Callander says that his 16-year-old nephew was involved in a bike collision last year. Callander's nephew was crossing the road when a speeding motorist saw him at the last moment and slammed on the brakes. The boy was struck by the car and flew over the hood of the vehicle with his head striking the windshield. Matthew then fell off the vehicle and onto the pavement.

RCMP reminds cyclists to wear helmets

Callander says that "the ER doctor advised the family that had he not been wearing a bicycle helmet, he probably would have been killed. The helmet that Matthew was wearing at the time of the accident was busted in half from the force of the impact." Head injuries can cause long-term brain damage and even death.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Pregnancy Hormone May Help In Brain Injury Recovery

Adult traumatic brain injury patients who are given the pregnancy hormone progesterone show evidence of having an improved recovery. A recent article in the Annals of Emergency Medicine discusses a recent study from the School of Medicine at Emory University in which brain injury patients were randomly given a placebo or progesterone. The brain pressure levels stayed constant in progesterone-treated patients, but it increased in those given the placebo; increases in brain pressure raise the risk of brain damage.

Pregnancy Hormone May Help With Brain Injury

Dr. David W. Wright, from Emory University's School of Medicine, said of the results: "I'd like physicians to appreciate the excitement and hope of finally identifying an agent for the treatment of traumatic brain injury -- and possibly other neurological injuries such as stroke, spinal cord injury, and multiple sclerosis. No current therapy exists that improves the outcome of brain injury patients." Those with severe brain injuries saw the most significant results while taking progesterone.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 09:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Man Given $9M for Brain Injury Suffered in Beating

Billy Ray Johnson, 46, a mentally disabled black man who was taunted, beaten, and left in a field by four white men in 2003, has been awarded $9 million for the injuries he suffered as a result of the ordeal. Johnson still is in a nursing home. The men who assaulted him were fined and given probation and jail time, but none served more than 60 days in jail.

Jury Awards Man $9 Million to US Man Who Suffered Brain Injury in Beating

Johnson functioned at the mental level of a child at the time of the attack. Dallas Chadwick Stone, John Wesley Owens, James Cory Hicks, and Christopher Colt Amox lured Johnson to a party, gave him alcohol, and teased him for their amusement. Johnson was discovered unconscious on a fire ant mound with a serious concussion and bleeding in the brain.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 10:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Memory Loss Caused By Brain Damage is Reversible

The brain damage caused by degenerative brain diseases, such as Alzheimer's, might soon be reversible with drug treatment. A new study suggests that "memory loss" might not actually be a permanent loss; instead, memories may simply be inaccessible because of blocked neural pathways.

Memory Loss Caused By Brain Damage Is Reversible

Mice suffering from the type of brain damage usually seen in dementia patients were used in experiments. After undergoing a period of "rehabilitation," the mice were able to remember how to perform tasks that they had forgotten when the brain damage set in. Similar regenerative results also were seen with drug use. Although there is no promise that these techniques will work in humans, the results are promising. Lead author Li-Huei Tsai said that the results raise "the possibility of recovering long-term memories in patients."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Migraine Headaches Could Cause Brain Damage

Migraines may cause more than head pain, scientists say. Evidence suggests that headaches may act as short-term strokes, causing parts of the brain to lose oxygen. Scientists say that the potential for brain damage means that migraine sufferers need to do all possible to avoid suffering the headaches.

Migraine Headaches May Cause Brain Damage, Mouse Study Shows

"Normally, the focus of migraine treatment is to reduce the pain. We're saying that migraines may be causing brain damage, and that the focus should be on prevention, which will stop not only the pain but also minimize potential damage," said Maiken Nedergaard, the neuroscientist who fronted the research. Deborah Friedman, a neurologist who was not involved in the study, said that several studies have shown that those who suffer migraines are at an increased risk for vascular problems like heart attacks and strokes.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 01:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Shaken Baby Conviction Appealed

Natalie Beard's body showed no outward signs of abuse when she was brought to the hospital in 1995: she had no broken bones, bruises, or cuts. However, the 7-month-old's eyes showed a different story. Her retinas were puckered and red. Internally, there was acute bleeding outside and underneath the brain's outer membrane, which is the kind of damage usually seen with a burst aneurysm. All of this suggested that Natalie had been shaken to death.

Shaken baby syndrome conviction appealed

Audrey Edmunds was convicted of Natalie's death; she is 10 years into her 18-year prison sentence. However, Edmunds' attorneys question her conviction. They say that shaking alone could not have caused Natalie's injuries without leaving other evidence of abuse. Dr. Robert Huntington III, the forensic pathologist whose testimony helped convict Edmunds, now questions his diagnosis: "I'd say she died of a head injury, and I don't know when it happened... There's room for reasonable doubt."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 01:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Soldier Claims Disciplinary Hearing Because of Behavior Caused by Brain Injury

An army soldier says that he will have a disciplinary hearing for behavior that he says was caused by a brain injury he suffered during Special Forces training. Paul Thurman says that commanders ignored his injury and sent him to Iraq anyway. Fort Carson officials are not commenting on the case, saying privacy laws forbid them from doing so.

Soldier Claims Disciplinary Hearing Based On Behavior From Brain Injury

Thurman will face up to 30 days in custody if he is convicted of not having followed orders. Medical records obtained by the Associated Press say that Thurman suffered a brain injury after a log fell on his head during training at Fort Bragg in North Carolina in March 2006. A mock explosion also occurred within 3 feet of Thurman's head.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 05:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Case Against Midwife Nets $2.27 M

A $2.27 million verdict has been handed down in a medical malpractice lawsuit against Pamela Kozick, a nurse midwife from the Women's Health Associates of Carlisle. The lawsuit was filed in 2002 in Cumberland County, saying that Christian Boullianne was born with severe brain damage and spastic cerebral palsy. Daniel Weinstock, who represented Christian's parents, Gerard and Linda Boullianne, said that “Cumberland County is notoriously a difficult county to bring a medical malpractice case in. I think this case sort of demonstrates that if the case is clear enough, a medical malpractice case can be won in any venue.”

Medical case wins $2.27M

The plaintiffs say that Christian's condition was a result of Kozick's failure to recognize obvious signs of fetal discomfort in labor. Weinstock said that Kozick was negligent because fetal monitor readings were "non-reassuring" for the final hour and 24 minutes of the labor. “The defendant is a nurse midwife,” Weinstock said of Kozick. “There’s a very clear hospital policy that says if the (fetal monitor) strips are non-reassuring, she needs to call a doctor. She failed to do that.” Kozick maintained that the readings were within normal limits throughout the labor.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ethicists Divided Over Baby Emilio

The story of Emilio Gonzales has caused argument between even medical ethicists. Emilio suffers brain damage from a genetic condition that has destroyed his central nervous system. He is unable to see, speak, or eat and depends on a ventilator to breathe for him. The hospital at which Emilio is living says that keeping Emilio alive on a ventilator is cruel to Emilio; he is in constant pain. However, Emilio's mother wants to keep her son on the ventilator, because she wants his to die "naturally, the way God intended." Without the support of the ventilator, Emilio would die within hours.

Fight over baby's life support divides ethicists

Under current Texas law, hospitals have the right to remove life support if medical experts say that the support is medically inappropriate. Medical ethicists differ in opinions on the case. Art Caplan, supports the Texas law that allows hospitals to override a family's decisions in life or death situations: "There are occasions where family members just don't get it right. No parent should have the right to cause suffering in a kid in a futile situation." However, Dr. Lainie Ross, disagrees: "Who am I to judge what's a good quality of life? If this were my kid, I'd have pulled the ventilator months ago, but this isn't my kid."

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Women's Brains More Damaged By Alcohol Than Men's

The brain damaging effects of alcohol are more severe in women than in men, says a new Russian study. Women alcoholics did worse than their male counterparts on a variety of tests on neurocognitive function. Dr. Barbara Flannery, from RTI International, said that these findings are not good news for alcohol-dependent men because "women are vulnerable to the extent to which they will experience the negative consequences of alcohol abuse and alcoholism more rapidly than men, but men will also experience it -- the same kinds of effects."

Alcohol Damages Women's Brains Faster Than Men's

Other effects of heavy drinking, such as heart and liver damage, have also been found to occur more quickly in women than in men. This study looked at 78 alcoholic men and 24 alcoholic women. Sixty-eight non-alcoholic men and women were used as a control group. All participants in the study took cognitive tests. The alcoholic women performed worse on tests of visual working memory, cognitive flexibility, and spatial planning and problem solving than the alcoholic men.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

An Update on the Signature Wound of Iraq

Traumatic brain injury has established itself as being the signature wound of Iraq. What is most troubling about traumatic brain injury is the fact that it can occur in a variety of situations and often is difficult to diagnose. Any soldier who is in the area of a blast is at risk; tens and even hundreds of thousands of veterans could be affected by brain injury. Gary Watts, a soldier in Iraq who suffered a brain injury when his truck rolled down an embankment, said he only had "a sore neck and a bad, bad headache;" this injury later was diagnosed as a TBI.

Troops' Head Wounds Go Undiagnosed: The Hidden Cost of TBI

Lately, more attention has become focused on TBI issues. Some have suggested that TBI screenings should be required for all returning soldiers. Bob Woodruff's recent television segment about traumatic brain injury drew further attention to the cause. A new policy has taken notice of the importance of recognizing brain injury: beginning in the spring, all troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan who seek veterans care will be screened for traumatic brain injury. However, the new directive only will affect about 200,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who seek veterans care. Consequently, over one million men and women still will not be screened.

Posted by Patricia Bowling at 12:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

May 31, 2007

Skull Implant

May 30, 2007

Accomodating an Employee with a TBI

May 29, 2007

Hypothermia TBI Treatment Trials Begin

May 28, 2007

Brain Injury Victims "Stuck" In Nursing Homes

May 25, 2007

Brain Injury Survivor Raises Awareness

May 24, 2007

Pediatricians and Pathologists Have TBI Differently

May 23, 2007

Does Calcium Cause Brain Damage?

May 22, 2007

Crash Victim Doing Well After Accident

May 21, 2007

Damaged Brain Able to Rapidly Recover

May 18, 2007

Boxers Face Brain Injury

May 17, 2007

Champagne Protects Brain Cells

May 16, 2007

Baby Died of Brain Injury

May 15, 2007

Iraq Brain Injuries Focus of Bill

May 14, 2007

A Reminder to Cyclists to Wear Helmets

Pregnancy Hormone May Help In Brain Injury Recovery

May 11, 2007

Man Given $9M for Brain Injury Suffered in Beating

May 10, 2007

Memory Loss Caused By Brain Damage is Reversible

May 09, 2007

Migraine Headaches Could Cause Brain Damage

May 08, 2007

Shaken Baby Conviction Appealed

May 07, 2007

Soldier Claims Disciplinary Hearing Because of Behavior Caused by Brain Injury

May 04, 2007

Case Against Midwife Nets $2.27 M

May 03, 2007

Ethicists Divided Over Baby Emilio

May 02, 2007

Women's Brains More Damaged By Alcohol Than Men's

May 01, 2007

An Update on the Signature Wound of Iraq