Articles: traumatic-brain-injuries.
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India has one of the highest TBI burdens due to road traffic accidents (RTAs), with 60% of head injuries being attributable to RTA and more than 150,000 lives being lost annually due to traumatic brain injury (TBI). These numbers have prompted institutions and organizations at international, national, and local levels to mobilize and address this burden through prevention, prehospital care, and in hospital care. Academic institutions such as Andhra Medical College have run local campaigns promoting the wearing of helmets when riding 2-wheelers. ⋯ Institutions such as American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, NSI, and NTSI have collaboratively developed TBI management guidelines that are specific to the Indian population (supported by American Association of South Asian Neurosurgeons). Non-governmental organizations such as the Indian Head Injury Foundation and Save Life Foundation have contributed to this movement by promoting awareness through campaigns and public education. While TBI remains a large burden in India, a mobilization and coalesced efforts of such a scale holds promise for tackling this burden.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2022
Multimodal Biomarkers of Repetitive Head Impacts and Traumatic Encephalopathy Syndrome: A Clinico-Pathological Case Series.
Traumatic encephalopathy syndrome (TES) criteria were developed to aid diagnosis of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) pathology during life. Interpreting clinical and biomarker findings in patients with TES during life necessitates autopsy-based determination of the neuropathological profile. We report a clinicopathological series of nine patients with previous repetitive head impacts (RHI) classified retrospectively using the recent TES research framework (100% male and white/Caucasian, age at death 49-84) who completed antemortem neuropsychological evaluations, T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging, diffusion tensor imaging (n = 6), (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (n = 5), and plasma measurement of neurofilament light (NfL), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and total tau (n = 8). ⋯ Memory and executive function decline, limbic system brain changes (atrophy, decreased white matter integrity, hypometabolism), and plasma biomarker alterations are common in RHI and TES but may reflect multiple neuropathologies. In particular, the neuropathological differential for patients with RHI or TES presenting with medial temporal atrophy and memory loss should include limbic TDP-43. Researchers and clinicians should be cautious in attributing cognitive, neuroimaging, or other biomarker changes solely to CTE tau pathology based on previous RHI or a TES diagnosis alone.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2022
American football position-specific neurometabolic changes in high school athletes - a magnetic resonance spectroscopic study.
Reports estimate between 1.6-3.8 million sports-related concussions occur annually, with 30% occurring in youth male American football athletes. Many studies report neurophysiological changes in these athletes, but the exact reasons for these changes remain elusive. Investigation of injury mechanics highlights a need to address how player position might impact these changes. ⋯ The majority of regression results involved DLPFC metabolites in linemen, where metabolite levels were higher from Pre to Post, with increasing HAE load. Comparisons with control athletes revealed higher metabolite levels in football athletes both before and after the season. This study highlights the importance of player position when conducting analyses on American football athletes and demonstrates elevated DLPFC and M1 brain metabolites in football athletes compared with control athletes at both Pre and Post, suggesting potential HAE-related neurocompensatory mechanisms.
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Journal of neurotrauma · Sep 2022
Presence of persistent parent reported emotional and behavioral-related concussion symptoms is associated with lower health-related quality of life in adolescent athletes.
Persistent concussion symptoms in adolescents are associated with lower health-related quality of life (HRQOL). The association between persistent emotional and behavioral-related concussion symptoms (EBS) and HRQOL is unknown, however. This study was a prospective cohort of adolescent athletes presenting to a concussion clinic within three days post-concussion and completing a one-month follow-up. ⋯ At one-month post-concussion, adolescents with pre-concussion EBS levels had significantly lower psychosocial, physical, and total HRQOL than those with no EBS. In addition, those with EBS worse than pre-concussion had significantly lower psychosocial, physical, and total HRQOL than those with no EBS and EBS at pre-concussion levels. These findings highlight the importance of HRQOL assessments and that targeted interventions may be needed for those with EBS at one-month post-concussion to improve HRQOL.