According to the Center of Disease Control, an estimated 1.7 million people in the United States sustain a traumatic brain injury every year. Of those patients, 275,000 people are hospitalized and many are unconscious and in a temporary or permanent comas across the country (Get the Stats, n.d.) While doctors work to help patients recover as best to their medical knowledge, experts are developing new techniques to make coma recovery more prevalent in cases of traumatic brain injuries. Medical researchers around the world are working to grasp the biology behind the human brain and its functions, as well as understand how it responds to injury. One of the most famous responses to traumatic brain injuries are the different types of comas patients …show more content…
Presently, “patients who have suffered a serious anoxic episode will usually be admitted to an intensive care unit and put on a ventilator. The patient may need drugs to maintain adequate blood pressure and normal heart beat” (Treatment and recovery, n.d., Acute treatment, para. 2). Depending on the extent of injury to the brain, the ventilator and pharmaceutical drugs will help maintain homeostasis in the body to support the life of the patient until the patient heals enough to begin to fulfill these body functions on their own. A technique called Hyperbaric oxygen therapy may increase the rate of healing, and it has been used as a treatment for anoxic brain injuries in recent studies. In one study done by Dr. Amir Hadanny and his associates (2015), they state, “Hyperbaric oxygen therapy has recently been shown to have neurotherapeutic effects in patients suffering from chronic cognitive impairments consequent to stroke and mild traumatic brain injury” (Hadanny, et al, Abstract). Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a medical treatment which enhances the body's natural healing process by inhalation of one hundred percent oxygen in a total body chamber, where atmospheric pressure is increased and controlled (About HBOT, n.d., para. 1). Although Dr. Amir Hadanny performed these tests on conscious individuals so he could determine the level of …show more content…
There are also many different ways to wake them from their deep sleep. In medically induced coma, although in relative terms it is quite easy to pull patients from their drug-induced unconsciousness, a machine that monitors the patient’s life vitals could help relieve some work from the professionals caring for the patient. While patients sleep as the result of a brain injury caused by a lack of oxygen, putting in a one hundred percent oxygen chamber may increase healing. Finally, in the most complex coma, a persistent vegetative state, something as simple as saying the patient’s name could increase the likeliness that the patient may wake one day. The brain is the most complex organ in the human body. As researchers work to unlock the secrets of the brain, they might also discover new ways to wake patients locked in their own
...Trauma Foundation, medical care is improving (Ross 27). Constant learning about the brain is fundamental to discover better medications for those affected after experiencing a traumatic brain injury. Scientists are always finding stronger treatments for patients that have had a TBI. In a couple years, doctors see patients with severe cases being able to live a normal life (28). With improving technology, the medical field will always continue to grow.
Until recently there was virtually nothing doctors could do for the 500,000 Americans who have strokes each year, the 500,000 to 750,000 who experience severe head injury, or the 10,000 people who are paralyzed after spinal cord damage (3). However, that is about to change. Researchers now think it may be possible to replace destroyed brain cells with new ones to give victims of stroke and brain injury a chance to relearn how to control their body, form new thinking processes, and regain emotions. After demolishing the long-standing myth that brain cells cannot regenerate or proliferate, scientists are developing ways to stimulate cells to do just that. Although stroke, head injury, and paralysis are three of the most devastating things that can happen to anyone, scientists have recently learned that the damage they cause is not preordained. It takes place over minutes, hours, and days, giving them a precious opportunity to develop treatments to halt much of the damage. Most of the new remedies are not yet available, but an explosion of research in the last five to ten years has convinced scientists that some of them will work (8).
When the brain goes through a traumatic injury, the body enters a comatose state. Anyone who does not regain consciousness within a few weeks after a head injury was said to have no hope for meaningful improvement. They are called vegetables. Although the body seems to be unresponsive, many have been proven to still have thoughts, feelings, and memories flickering in and out of consciousness. Can neuroscience rescue these lost brains? In the article by Kat McGowan, “Back From The Brink,” she elaborates on the strenuous ingenuity of Giacino, an expert in disorders of consciousness, and Nicholas Schiff, Weill Cornell Medical Center neurologist. A series of increasingly spectacular experiments conducted by these two prove that the semiconscious
Mez, Jesse. “Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy: Where Are We and Where Are We Going?” Current neurology and neuroscience reports, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Dec. 2013,
The central philosophy of cryonics is not only that a conscious being can be revived to full health after being in cryonic suspension, but that they may be revived and rejuvenated with identity, personality and long term memory intact. Personality and identity are stored in cell structures throughout the brain that effectively do not require continuous brain activity to survive. The premise that a brain can survive with little brain function is a generally accepted one in medicine. Recorded cases of individual brain’s stopping functioning and then later, recovering with rete...
Traumatic brain injury is a serious injury that can happen to anyone at anytime. It could happen in sports, car crashes, fights and everywhere in everyday life. It is very serious and has long lasting effects. It is important to realize and recognize the symptoms of TBI, so the brain can heal and function properly. Concussions are a very common form of TBI, and are heard about mostly in sports, like football and soccer. To help reduce the impact of hits that could cause a concussion, there are companies that make special padding to wear around the head, or under the helmet, in sports. However concussions and other forms of TBI are not preventable at all and can be fatal.
During the period November 2005-January 2009 a survey was conducted by Dr. Owen at the Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences in the United Kingdom. This clinical study was conducted on 54 patients that received severe brain injury’s 23 of them were in a vegetative state and 31 were in a minimally conscious state. This study main goals are to define the capacitance for a response to stimulation and to evaluate any available response through intervention to form communication using information from routine Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). The investigators developed two different imagery tasks, motor and spatial imagery that the patients were going to perform while they were in the MRI scanner. In the motor imagery they were asked to imagine playing tennis where they hit
Over 1.7 million traumatic brain injuries are reported each year. According to reports the leading cause of brain injuries are from falls followed by motor vehicle accidents, and accidents that were a result of being struck by something. Falls account for 32.5% of traumatic brain injuries in the United States. 50% of all child brain injuries are from falling. 61 % of all traumatic brain injuries among adults are 65 years old or older. Traumatic brain injuries are very violent blows or jolts to the head or body that result in the penetration of the skull. Mild traumatic brain injuries can cause brief dysfunction of the brain cells. Serious brain injuries can cause bleeding, bruising, physical damage to other parts of the body and torn tissues. Brain injuries are more prevalent with males rather than females. Causes of brain injuries include:
A traumatic brain injury can be described as any blow to the head that disrupts the normal function of the brain. The most common type of mild traumatic brain injury is a concussion and is one of the leading injuries among athletes. A concussion is defined as several common presenting symptoms that incorporate clinical, pathological and biomechanical aspects.1 Signs and symptoms of a concussion include physical symptoms such as nausea, headache, vomiting, balance problems, dizziness, visual problems and hypersensitivity to light and noise. Cognitive symptoms commonly include increased concentration issues and feeling mentally foggy, forgetful, confused. Emotional symptoms include irritability, sadness and increased anxiety. Sleep symptoms
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a complex brain injury that is produced by a sudden damage to the brain, resulting in a wide range of symptoms and infirmities. There are multiple different causes of TBIs, but damage to the brain comes in two forms: primary brain damage and secondary brain damage. Primary brain injury occurs at the time of impact. Secondary brain injury is the type of damage that progresses over time after the initial insult, leading to seizures, brain swelling and the like. This subsequent deterioration of the brain and its cellular processes is not the result of mechanical damage; instead, it signifies the successive pathological developments initiated with the primary injury. Secondary insult may be a potential focus
My objective in the long term is to provide therapeutic and counseling services that assist persons suffering with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or acquired brain injury (ABI) in coping and recovering from the mental illnesses that often accompany such tragedies. TBI/ABI has shown a proven link with “anxiety, depression, personality changes, aggression (National Alliance on Mental Illness Veterans Resource Center May 8, 2009 Traumatic Brain Injury)”, as well as many other issues. As the caregiver for a survivor of a rare and deadly strain of encephalitis, I have a personal perspective that I feel brings much to the discussion. I see the information I am currently gathering at Empire State College as the building blocks that pave the way to a thrilling career in a growing segment of the mental health industry. The CDC claims that approximately 1.4 million Americans suffer TBIs annually (Centers for Disease Control Injury Center May 30, 2007 Traumatic Brain Injury in the United States: Emergency Department Visits, Hospitalizations, and Deaths) and it has been called the “signature injury” of the current wars in Iraq & Afghanistan by the National Alliance on Mental Illness. As such, it is my belief that we need to focus time and energy on developing new programs to help these patients to cope with the new limitations and encourage rehabilitation and restoration.
Traumatic brain injury falls into two categories. Penetrating TBI, also known as open TBI, is when an object penetrates the head and enters the brain tissue. Examples of this might be a knife, bullet, hammer, baseball bat, etc. Nonpenetrating TBI, also known as closed head injury or blunt TBI is when the damage happens to the outside of the head. One of the number one causes of this type of TBI is from motor vehicle accidents, but other causes could be sports injuries where the person may have experienced excessive blows to their head, or just falling and hitting their head could cause a TBI as well. The severity of a TBI can range from a short loss
Should the fear of brain trauma, change the rules of sports for good? Athletes have been susceptible for brain injuries since contact sports were invented. Although some are familiar with this, many people are unaware of the long term ramifications that often come with these types of injuries. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, (ALS) is a disease that is slowly plaguing our nation, starting with athletes. It is one of the fatal repercussions of repetitive head trauma, that is often overlooked. CTE, also known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy is also a disease caused by head trauma that can drastically impact one’s life. CTE’s have a subset of different associated diseases such as Alzheimer's, Dementia, Parkinsons, and Huntingtons disease.
Traumatic brain injury or TBI occurs when a child has a head injury that causes damage to the brain. These injuries can be caused from being hit in the head or violently shaken. The results of TBI can change how a person’s brain develops, how they act, move, and think. It can also affect how they learn in school (NICHCY, 2012). TBI can affect the way a child thinks, retains information, attention span, behavior, speech, physical activities (which includes walking), and the way a child learns.
In many hospitals around the world, patients in the adult Neurological ICU experience a low quality of life and the hospital staff has limited resources to monitor the patients. Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, patients are recovering in an environment where they have monotone environments and have limited movements. The patients can experience cases of depression, disrupted sleep cycles, or have longer recovery times. Recently, I was able to attend the Heads in The Game Research program at the University of Mississippi to research solutions to help TBI patients in the Neuro ICU. I worked alongside 6 undergraduate researchers with a partnership with Cspire and the UMMC, a hospital that has co-ops with the University of Mississippi. During my