Welcome to your daily round-up of everything happening in the world of neurorehabilitation.
Research news
Escape rooms linked to better stroke care
Interesting preliminary findings suggest that escape room activities may help nurses master best practices for stroke care. Specialist stroke nurses worked to solve puzzles focused on treatment, intensive care, identifying post-stroke complications and more. The results showed improvements in the quality of neurological checks and nurses also felt more confident in caring for stroke patients. Read more.
Improving brain and heart recovery following TBI
A new study in the peer-reviewed Journal of Neurotrauma has shown that Angiotensin II type 2 receptor (AT2R) activation improves neurological and cardiac deficiencies caused by traumatic brain injury (TBI) in mice. Treatment with an AT2R agonist 24 hours after TBI, alleviated blood-brain barrier leakage and brain swelling, inhibited the expression of proinflammatory cytokines in the brain and heart, and benefited cardiac function. Read more.
How the brain compensates for age-related decline
Scientists have found the strongest evidence yet that our brains can compensate for age-related deterioration by recruiting other areas to help with brain function and maintain cognitive performance.
In a study published in the journal eLife, a team led by scientists at the University of Cambridge in collaboration with the University of Sussex have shown that when the brain recruits other areas, it improves performance specifically in the brains of older people. Read more.
CTE pathology linked to severity of symptoms
The clinical symptoms in life of people diagnosed with CTE after death can vary and there has been robust debate as to what symptoms, if any, are caused by CTE pathology.
In a new study from the Boston University CTE Center, researchers provide the most definitive evidence to date that CTE p-tau pathology is primarily responsible for cognitive and functional symptoms, explaining up to 49 per cent of the variation seen in individual patients. Read more
Potential new glioblastoma treatment
A team of Michigan State University scientists has unveiled a potential game-changer in the fight against glioblastoma, the most common and currently incurable form of brain cancer. Their weapon of choice? A drug-like compound named Ogremorphin, or OGM. In laboratory experiments, OGM showed a remarkable ability to kill glioblastoma cells while leaving normal cells unharmed. Read more
Company and financial news
$12m funding to develop wearable tech
AI nerotech company, Elemind, has revealed a $12 million seed round to develop its wearable product before its launch in the coming months.Elemind is developing what it calls “electric medicine” technology, which can non-invasively read individual brainwaves and guide them in real-time by responding with tailored stimulation. Read more.
Wearable exoskeleton takes first steps
The Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) in collaboration with Samick THK has begun the commercial development of an AI-based wearable exoskeleton that provides strength assistance for joints. The wearable robots are designed to assist the elderly in activities such as hiking and golf. Read more.
FDA clearance for neuromuscular electrical stimulation device
Zynex, a company specialising in non-invasive medical devices for pain management, rehabilitation, and patient monitoring, has received FDA clearance for its next generation M-Wave Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES) device. The M-Wave is designed to aid recovery from surgery, and help in the management of chronic conditions. Read more.
Policy, legislation and society news
NICE endorses AI software for stroke assessments
New guidance from the UK National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has endorsed NHS deployment of two artificial intelligence (AI)-derived software technologies to support the review and reporting of computed tomography (CT) brain scans in patients with suspected stroke. Read more.
