Preventing brain injury
Stopping injury before it happens, from concussion in sport to falls, road safety and stroke risk.
Preventing brain injury11 AugMedication which targets white blood cells and stabilises atherosclerotic plaques could be used to help prevent strokes, new research has revealed. By ‘re-programming’ white blood cells, the ability to switch them from a pro-inflammatory to an anti-inflammatory state has been discovered. Pro-inflammatory white blood cells are known to make atherosclerotic plaques unstable, making them more [...]
Preventing brain injury11 AugThe UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and Wake Forest School of Medicine will lead a US$29.9 million studyto help stroke survivors prevent experiencing another by controlling their blood pressure. Blood pressure control is key when it comes to avoiding another stroke. The researchers estimate that 70 to 80 per cent of stroke survivors have high blood [...]
Stroke10 JunMedication which targets white blood cells and stabilises atherosclerotic plaques could be used to help prevent strokes, new research has revealed.
By ‘re-programming’ white blood cells, the ability to switch them from a pro-inflammatory to an anti-inflammatory state has been discovered. Pro-inflammatory white blood cells are known to make atherosclerotic plaques unstable, making them more likely to rupture and block blood flow to the brain. When the University of Sheffield research team took a type of white blood cell known as macrophages from human blood samples and treated them with a common anti-inflammatory drug for 24 hours, they found that the macrophages themselves became anti-inflammatory. Unveiling their findings yesterday at the British Cardiovascular Society conference, the anti-inflammatory macrophages were also less able to bind to and ingest harmful oxidised LDL (OxLDL), known to play a major role in atherosclerosis and present in high quantities in plaques most likely to lead to a stroke.
Brain injury12 MayThe effectiveness of bike helmets in protecting against brain injuries caused by collisions at speed has been tested for the first time.
New helmet technologies have emerged in recent years to mitigate the instances and severity of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in collisions from cycling, but the way this is traditionally tested leaves room for doubt in their findings. The majority of real-world cycling-based TBIs are caused by rotational forces on the brain, which are generated by the head hitting the ground at an oblique angle, mostly seen when cyclists fall or collide while moving.
Brain injury6 MayAn official concussion protocol has been created for mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters competing in the UFC, in a first for the sport which builds further on global efforts to safeguard sportspeople from the effects of head injury.
The UFC Performance Institute has published its protocol, aimed at both fighters and coaches, as part of a 484-page study based on data collected between 2017 and 2019. Hailed as the most comprehensive MMA study ever undertaken, it details the UFC’s five-step rules around returning to the sport following concussion or TBI.
Preventing brain injury15 AprTemporary concussion substitutes must be included in the current trials underway in the Premier League to safeguard the safety of players, players’ unions said today. FIFPRO and the PFA have called for the introduction of temporary substitutes no later than June 1, and for the scope of the 18-month trial - which enables a team [...]
Brain injury7 AprContracting COVID-19 increases the risk of developing neurological conditions including depression, dementia and stroke, new research has revealed.
One in three survivors of the deadly virus - 34 per cent - were diagnosed with a neurological or psychiatric condition within six months of being infected. And for those who were admitted to hospital or intensive care, the risk became even higher, University of Oxford researchers found, at 39 per cent. This rose to 46 per cent in those who needed intensive care, and 62 per cent among people who had encephalopathy while battling COVID-19.
Brain injury6 AprCriticism has again mounted around the “fundamentally flawed” concussion trials in football, after an incident where a player was allowed to continue after sustaining a head injury.
In the Sheffield United vs Leeds match at the weekend, George Baldock initially continued after being checked on the pitch by medics, but had to come off five minutes later after feeling groggy and experiencing blurred vision. Under new trial concussion protocols introduced in the Premiership, players who sustain a head injury can be replaced in a concussion substitution, which will remove them from the game permanently.
A Parliamentary inquiry is to be held to examine the link between sport and long-term brain injury.
The Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee will look into the issue over two sessions, the first of which will be held next Tuesday. Through the inquiry, the cross-party group of MPs will consider scientific evidence for links between head trauma and dementia and how risks could be mitigated.
Brain injury11 FebThe Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) has added its weight to calls for newly-introduced trials around concussions substitutions to go further.
The PFA, the union representing professional players, has said temporary concussion substitutions need to be considered, in addition to the permanent substitutions which are currently offered under the Premier League trial. Their comments come after the use of the first concussion substitution in football, after West Ham’s Issa Diop was replaced after a clash of heads with Anthony Martial of Manchester United.
