Journal of neurotrauma
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Journal of neurotrauma · Apr 2017
Traumatic brain injury and post-deployment binge drinking among male and female Army active duty service members returning from OEF/OIF.
This study examines whether the relationship between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-deployment binge drinking is independent of screening positive for mental health problems among male and female service members. Data are from the Substance Use and Psychological Injury Combat Study of Army members returning from deployment to Afghanistan or Iraq in fiscal years 2008-2011. The sample consists of 240,694 male and 26,406 female active duty members who completed initial and follow-up questionnaires. ⋯ Females with both TBI and mental health positive screens had more than double the risk of frequent binge drinking, compared with those without either problem (15.8% vs. 6.6%), and males with both problems had almost double the risk, compared with males with neither problem (33.6% vs. 19.7%). In multivariable logistic regression models, having a TBI and a comorbid positive mental health screen was associated with increased odds of frequent binge drinking among both males and females (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.59, CI: 1.50-1.69, and AOR = 2.11, CI: 1.57-2.83, respectively), compared with those with neither condition. More research is needed on the interaction of gender and binge drinking, especially when TBI and mental health problems co-exist.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Apr 2017
Microstructural integrity of hippocampal subregions is impaired after mild traumatic brain injury.
Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) affects a large number of individuals and diffusion tensor imaging can be used to investigate microstructural integrity of brain tissue after mTBI. However, results have varied considerably between studies and gray matter (GM) integrity has been largely neglected in these investigations. Given impaired working memory processing after mTBI and its possible association with Alzheimer's disease, we investigated hippocampal integrity and parcellated this structure into five subregions: subiculum, cornu ammonis (CA) 1, CA 2/3, CA 4/dentate gyrus, and stratum radiatum/lacunosum-moleculare. ⋯ Subjects with mTBI reported more symptoms and performed worse in a non-standard verbal working memory task. Based on these preliminary findings, we were able to demonstrate altered diffusivity of hippocampal subregions following mTBI, indicating impaired GM microstructural integrity. These differences highlight the potential of diffusion imaging for investigation of subtle yet relevant changes in GM microstructure not detected otherwise following mTBI.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Apr 2017
Resting-state MEG Reveals Different Patterns of Aberrant Functional Connectivity in Combat-related Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.
Blast mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is a leading cause of sustained impairment in military service members and veterans. However, the mechanism of persistent disability is not fully understood. The present study investigated disturbances in brain functioning in mTBI participants using a source-imaging-based approach to analyze functional connectivity (FC) from resting-state magnetoencephalography (rs-MEG). ⋯ Group differences were highly consistent across the two different FC measures. FC of the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex correlated with executive functioning and processing speed in mTBI participants. Altogether, our findings of increased and decreased regionalpatterns of FC suggest that disturbances in intrinsic brain connectivity may be the result of multiple mechanisms, and are associated with cognitive sequelae of the injury.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Apr 2017
PHENELZINE PROTECTS BRAIN MITOCHONDRIAL FUNCTION In vitro and In vivo FOLLOWING TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY BY SCAVENGING THE REACTIVE CARBONYLS 4-HYDROXYNONENAL AND ACROLEIN LEADING TO CORTICAL HISTOLOGICAL NEUROPROTECTION.
Lipid peroxidation (LP) is a key contributor to the pathophysiology of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Traditional antioxidant therapies are intended to scavenge the free radicals responsible for either initiation or propagation of LP. A more recently explored approach involves scavenging the terminal LP breakdown products that are highly reactive and neurotoxic carbonyl compounds, 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) and acrolein (ACR), to prevent their covalent modification and rendering of cellular proteins nonfunctional leading to loss of ionic homeostasis, mitochondrial failure, and subsequent neuronal death. ⋯ This effect was not shared by a structurally similar MAO-I, pargyline, which lacks the hydrazine group, confirming that the mitochondrial protective effects of PZ were related to its carbonyl scavenging and not to MAO inhibition. In subsequent in vivo studies, we documented that PZ treatment begun at 15 min after controlled cortical impact TBI significantly attenuated 72-h post-injury mitochondrial respiratory dysfunction. The cortical mitochondrial respiratory protection occurred together with a significant increase in cortical tissue sparing.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Apr 2017
Generalized Seizures after Experimental Traumatic Brain Injury Occur at the Transition from Slow-Wave to Rapid-Eye-Movement Sleep.
Sleep disturbances commonly occur after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and may predispose patients to epileptic seizures. We hypothesized that unprovoked seizure occurrence post-TBI depends on the sleep-wake cycle, and that the electrographic characteristics of a given sleep stage provide biomarkers for post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE). We show, in a rat lateral fluid percussion model, that 92% of spontaneous generalized seizures occur during the transition from stage III to rapid eye movement sleep. Moreover, a reduction in spindle duration and dominant frequency during the transition stage present as specific and sensitive noninvasive biomarkers for experimentally induced PTE with generalized electrographic seizures.