Proving what works

A gut bacterial compound may worsen stroke brain injury by influencing immune responses, research in mice suggests. After severe stroke, mice had higher levels of gut bacteria able to produce indole, a compound made from the amino acid tryptophan. Researchers found that indole-producing bacteria worsened brain injury in mice. In people with ischaemic stroke, higher [...]

AstronauTx Ltd has announced that it has received funding from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) and that Parkinson's UK is funding an additional complementary research effort in collaboration with University College London (UCL). One project will test whether enhancing restorative sleep can reduce the accumulation of pathological proteins linked to Parkinson's [...]

An experimental MS drug restored movement and vision in mice by protecting nerve fibres and myelin, researchers report. The treatment, called K-9, also prevented increases in neurofilament light chain, a blood marker of nerve damage often used in clinical trials. Mice treated with the approved multiple sclerosis drug fingolimod did not show the same reversal [...]

Fractionated radiosurgery could offer a more effective way to treat large brain metastases after surgery, reducing the risk of recurrence and extending survival compared with a single treatment, a randomised trial has found. The randomised trial involved 242 patients with one to four brain metastases, including at least one tumour larger than two centimetres that [...]

A vaccine that trains the body to attack the toxic protein clumps behind Parkinson's disease has passed its first major test, with every participant who received it developing antibodies against the target in an early Phase 2 trial. The first part of the study involved 34 people with early-stage Parkinson’s disease. Of these, 25 received [...]

Neurorehabilitation provided by a Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) of therapists is considered best practice for individuals with acquired brain injury. However, real-world service evaluations remain limited. Therefore, a team of psychologists at Richardson Care decided to complete a service evaluation to examine the outcomes of adults with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). It aimed to evaluate the [...]

By SweetTree Home Care Service SweetTree's paper challenges a growing trend in which case management companies both manage a client's case and directly employ their support workers. It argues this combined model creates serious risks that are often invisible to clients and their representatives, and that commissioning care through an independent, CQC-regulated agency consistently delivers [...]

A new spinal injury study has examined ways to improve emergency care for athletes with catastrophic cervical spine injuries. The work focused on injuries to the cervical spine, the neck section of the spine that supports the head and protects the spinal cord. These injuries can be life-changing and need careful emergency handling to reduce [...]

Cygnet's Ranaich House has been praised for delivering “excellent” outcomes and creating an “uplifting and positive” atmosphere following an inspection from Care Inspectorate Scotland. The specialist social care service achieved top marks of ‘6 – Excellent’ for how well people’s wellbeing is supported and how care is planned, together with ‘5 – Very Good’ for [...]

By Chiltern Music Therapy In neurorehabilitation, timing is everything. Whether we are working on step symmetry following stroke, improving speech fluency in Parkinson’s, or supporting attention after traumatic brain injury, much of our work as AHPs centres on restoring the brain’s ability to predict, sequence and coordinate. What is less widely understood is that rhythm [...]