Newsline — Friday, October 3, 2014 9:00
Self-Reported Memory Complaints May Predict Impairments Later in Life
Researchers Find Cues for New Neuron Growth
Thursday, October 2, 2014 13:00
In a recent study published in the Journal of Neuroscience, researchers from the University of Washington examined the brain’s ability to replace cells that have been lost naturally. Neuroscientists have long known that new neurons are generated in the adult brains of many animals, but the birth of new neurons — neurogenesis — appears to be limited in mammals and humans, especially where new neurons are generated after there’s been a blow to the head, stroke or other physical loss of brain cells. During the study, the researchers worked with white-crowned sparrows, a medium-sized species that breeds in Alaska, then winters in California and Mexico. During the study, the researchers described the series of events that cues new neuron growth each spring, starting with a signal from the expiring cells the previous fall, which primes the brain to start producing stem cells. Like most songbirds, white-crowned sparrows experience growth in the area of the brain that controls song output during the breeding season when a superior songs helps them attract mates and define their territories….
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Study Finds Severely-injured Patients are Undertriaged in the U.S.
Thursday, October 2, 2014 9:00
According to the American College of Surgeons’ Committee on Trauma, patients with severe injuries should be treated at level-one or level-two trauma centers. However, a recent study published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine found that one out of three major trauma patients in 2010 actually received their treatments at lower-level trauma centers or non-trauma centers. Furthermore, the study found that 34 percent of all major trauma patients are undertriaged; with more than 40 percent of undertriaged patients diagnosed with traumatic brain injury. “Previous studies have found that patients treated at level one trauma centers have a 25 percent lower risk of death than those treated at non-trauma centers,” said the study’s lead investigator. “However, we didn’t know how many seriously injured people in the United States were not receiving definitive care at higher level trauma centers until now.” A major trauma patient is commonly defined as one with an injury-severity score of 16 or above on a scale of one (minor) to 75 (unsurvivable). There were an estimated 169,523 major-trauma patients in 2010…
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Some Concussion Education More Useful than Others, Parents Say
Wednesday, October 1, 2014 13:00
In a recent poll conducted by the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, parents whose kids participate in athletics will be asked to sign a waiver about concussion education, but that’s not enough to ensure parents are confident about handling the injury. Of the 921 parents of middle and high school children that were surveyed, about half reported participation in some type of concussion education. Additionally, 23 percent have read a brochure or online information, 17% have watched a video or attended a presentation, 11 percent have signed a waiver form, with no other educational component and 49 percent report no concussion education at all. “It is good news that many parents report they have received concussion education. We found, however, that the format of that concussion education really matters. The way the concussion information is delivered is linked to the parent’s confidence about managing their child’s injury,” said the University of Michigan’s associate research scientist in the department of pediatrics. Parents play a key role in deciding when a child returns to school…
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Brainwave Test Could Improve Autism Diagnosis and Classification
Wednesday, October 1, 2014 9:00
In a recent study published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University found that measuring how fast the brain responds to sights and sounds could help in objectively classifying people on the autism spectrum and may help diagnose the condition earlier. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in 68 children have been identified with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Autism is diagnosed based a patient’s behavioral characteristics and symptoms. “These assessments can be highly subjective and require a tremendous amount of clinical expertise,” said the study’s lead author. “We clearly need a more objective way to diagnose and classify this disorder.” The study was intended to see whether sensory processing varies along the autism spectrum. Forty-three children with ASD ages six to 17 were presented with either a simple auditory tone, a visual image (red circle), or a tone combined with an image, and were instructed to press a button as soon as possible after hearing the tone, seeing…
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Research Pinpoints Neurobiological Basis for Key PTSD Symptoms
Tuesday, September 30, 2014 15:00
In a new brain-imaging study, researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center have linked an opioid receptor in the brain — associated with emotions — to a narrow cluster of trauma symptoms; including sadness, emotional detachment and listlessness. The study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, holds important implications for targeted, personalized treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a condition that affects more than 8 million Americans. The new study confirms a growing body of evidence linking a particular set of symptoms to specific brain circuits and chemicals, and bolsters a shift within the field of psychiatry away from one-size-fits-all-treatments, and more toward individualized medication regimens that target highly specific neurobiological components. “We know from previous clinical trials that antidepressants, for example, do not work well for dysphoria and the numbing symptoms often found in PTSD,” said one of the study’s authors. “Currently, available antidepressants are just not linked specifically enough to the neurobiological basis of these symptoms in PTSD. Going forward, our study will help pave the way toward development of better options.” To read…
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Migraine Sufferers at Possible Risk for Parkinson’s Disease Later in Life
Tuesday, September 30, 2014 9:00
According to a new study published in the journal Neurology, migraine sufferers may be at greater risk for developing Parkinson’s disease or other movement disorders later in life. Additionally, the study found that those who have migraine with aura may be at double the risk for developing a movement disorder. Researchers studied 5,620 people between the ages of 33 and 65 for more than 25 years. At the beginning of the study, 3,924 participants did not suffer from headaches, 1,028 had headaches without migraine symptoms, 238 had migraine with no aura and 430 had migraine with aura. They later assessed whether participants had any symptoms of Parkinson’s disease or had been diagnosed with the disease, or if they had symptoms of Willis-Ekbom disease, a related disorder more commonly known as restless leg syndrome (RLS). The results of the study showed that people with migraine and aura were more than twice as likely to be diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease compared to those without headaches. A total of 2.4 percent of those with migraine and aura had the…
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ADHD Study Finds Slower Development of Key Connections
Monday, September 29, 2014 14:15
In a recent study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers from the University of Michigan’s department of psychiatry found that kids and teens with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) lag behind others of the same age in how quickly their brains form connections within, and between, key brain networks. This results in less mature brain connections between a brain network that controls internally-directed thought (such as daydreaming) and networks that allow a person to focus on externally-directed tasks. The lag in connection development may help explain why people with ADHD get easily distracted or struggle to stay focused. Additionally, the new findings — and the methods used to make them — may one day allow doctors to use brain scans to diagnose ADHD. This kind of neuroimaging biomarker doesn’t yet exist for ADHD, or any other psychiatric condition. During the study, the scans showed brain activity during a resting state. This allowed researchers to see how a number of different brain networks, each specialized for certain types of functions,…
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Researchers Study Effects of Statins on Patients Suffering from Hemorrhagic Stroke
Monday, September 29, 2014 10:15
Recent research published in the UK found that stroke patients whose statins are stopped in hospital are three-times more likely to die than those who continue on the anti-cholesterol drugs. The researchers warned doctors treating patients who have suffered a bleeding stroke to “consider carefully” before stopping their statins. The cholesterol busting drugs are known to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes caused by blood clots and blockages of the blood vessels, but the research team believes statins are beneficial for more reasons. The study found that 58 percent of patients who had been on statins but whose drugs were stopped in the hospital died within a month of their stroke, this compared with 19 percent of those whose statins were continued in the hospital. The study was based on almost 3,500 patients who were admitted to one of 20 hospitals who suffered a hemorrhagic stroke. To read more about this study, click here.
Vitamin B1 Deficiency May Cause Brain Damage
Friday, September 26, 2014 13:00
According to a recent study published in the journal Scientific American Medicine, neurologists from Loyola University Medical Center reported that a deficiency of Vitamin B1 (thiamine) can cause a potentially fatal brain disorder called Wernicke encephalopathy. Untreated, the condition can lead to irreversible brain damage and death. Wernicke encephalopathy is found in the wide range of brain diseases (referred to as encephalopathies) that are caused by metabolic disorders and toxic substances. Toxic encephalopathies can be caused by illegal drugs, environmental toxins and reactions to prescription drugs. Thiamine deficiency is among the nutritional deficiencies that can cause brain diseases such as Wernicke encephalopathy. Although the condition is likely underdiagnosed, with clinical studies reporting a 0.13-percent rate or less, autopsy studies show a prevalence of rates as high as 2.8 percent. “Particularly in those who suffer from alcoholism or AIDS, the diagnosis is missed on clinical examination in 75 to 80 percent of cases,” a Loyola neurologist said. To read more about this study, click here.