Journal of neurotrauma
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Journal of neurotrauma · Feb 2007
Axonal remyelination by cord blood stem cells after spinal cord injury.
Human umbilical cord blood stem cells (hUCB) hold great promise for therapeutic repair after spinal cord injury (SCI). Here, we present our preliminary investigations on axonal remyelination of injured spinal cord by transplanted hUCB. Adult male rats were subjected to moderate SCI using NYU Impactor, and hUCB were grafted into the site of injury one week after SCI. ⋯ Recovery of hind limb locomotor function was also significantly enhanced in the hUCB-treated rats based on Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) scores assessed 14 days after transplantation. These findings demonstrate that hUCB, when transplanted into the spinal cord 7 days after weight-drop injury, survive for at least 2 weeks, differentiate into oligodendrocytes and neurons, and enable improved locomotor function. Therefore, hUCB facilitate functional recovery after moderate SCI and may prove to be a useful therapeutic strategy to repair the injured spinal cord.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Feb 2007
Clinical significance of alphaII-spectrin breakdown products in cerebrospinal fluid after severe traumatic brain injury.
Following traumatic brain injury (TBI), the cytoskeletal protein alpha-II-spectrin is proteolyzed by calpain and caspase-3 to signature breakdown products. To determine whether alpha -II-spectrin proteolysis is a potentially reliable biomarker for TBI in humans, the present study (1) examined levels of spectrin breakdown products (SBDPs) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from adults with severe TBI and (2) examined the relationship between these levels, severity of injury, and clinical outcome. This prospective case control study enrolled 41 patients with severe TBI, defined by a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of < or =8, who underwent intraventricular intracranial pressure monitoring. ⋯ Mean SBDP densitometry values measured early after injury correlated with severity of injury, computed tomography (CT) scan findings, and outcome at 6 months post-injury. Taken together, these results support that alpha -II-spectrin breakdown products are potentially useful biomarker of severe TBI in humans. Our data further suggests that both necrotic/oncotic and apoptotic cell death mechanisms are activated in humans following severe TBI, but with a different time course after injury.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Feb 2007
Prognostic value of the Glasgow Coma Scale and pupil reactivity in traumatic brain injury assessed pre-hospital and on enrollment: an IMPACT analysis.
We studied the prognostic strength of the individual components of the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) and pupil reactivity to Glasgow Outcome Score (GOS) at 6 months post-injury. A total of 8721 moderate or severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) patient data from the IMPACT database on traumatic brain injury comprised the study cohort. The associations between motor score and pupil reactivity and 6-month GOS were analyzed by binary logistic regression and proportional odds methodology. ⋯ We also found a significant change in motor score from pre-hospital direct to study hospital enrollment ( p < 0.0001) and from the first in-hospital to study enrollment scores (p < 0.0001). Pupil reactivity was more robust between these time points. It is recommended that the study hospital enrollment GCS and pupil reactivity be used for prognostic analysis.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Feb 2007
Prognostic value of secondary insults in traumatic brain injury: results from the IMPACT study.
We determined the relationship between secondary insults (hypoxia, hypotension, and hypothermia) occurring prior to or on admission to hospital and 6-month outcome after traumatic brain injury (TBI). A meta-analysis of individual patient data, from seven Phase III randomized clinical trials (RCT) in moderate or severe TBI and three TBI population-based series, was performed to model outcome as measured by the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS). Proportional odds modeling was used to relate the probability of a poor outcome to hypoxia (N = 5661), hypotension ( N = 6629), and hypothermia ( N = 4195) separately. ⋯ Radiological signs of raised intracranial pressure (CT class III or IV) were more frequent in patients who had sustained hypoxia or hypotension. A significant association was observed between month of injury and hypothermia. The occurrence of secondary insults prior to or on admission to hospital in TBI patients is strongly related to poorer outcome and should therefore be a priority for emergency department personnel.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Feb 2007
Prognostic value of admission laboratory parameters in traumatic brain injury: results from the IMPACT study.
Abnormalities in laboratory parameters are frequent following traumatic brain injury (TBI), but few studies have investigated their predictive value. We aimed to describe and quantify the relation between laboratory parameters that are routinely determined on admission and final outcome following TBI. Individual patient data were available in the IMPACT database from six Phase III randomized controlled trials and one observational study in TBI. ⋯ Effects were strongest for increasing levels of glucose (odds ratio 1.7; 95% CI 1.54-1.83) and decreasing levels of Hb (odds ratio 0.7; CI 0.60-0.78). Higher glucose values were associated with increasing age, but on adjusted analysis, the strength of the association with outcome remained. Whether treatment of abnormal values may improve outcome needs further rigorous study.