Potential new treatment creates hope for the future

A groundbreaking new study by a brain injury doctor in San Francisco has revealed that the key to treating or preventing the long-term effects of a traumatic brain injury (TBI) could reside in a specific molecule, hitherto overlooked by researchers.

Dr Jeanne Paz of the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco published the study in Science. Paz and his colleagues identified the molecule, called C1q, in the thalamus — a part of the brain that can cause TBI side effects that are delayed for months or years after injury. These side effects, exacerbated by C1q, include seizures, inflammation, neuron death, sleep disturbances and more.

The cerebral cortex, which sits just below the skull and is usually the first point of injury during head trauma, has received the most recent attention from scientists working on TBI treatments. Corn Paz’s research found higher amounts of C1q in the thalamus than in the cortex, suggesting that the thalamus may hold new processing possibilities.

His team also discovered that many of these symptoms of head trauma never appeared if C1q was blocked by an antibody during the “latent phase.” This is the time between the injury and the late onset of long-term symptoms. The antibody has already been created and is in active clinical trials. These recent brain injury research findings could lead to a much more effective treatment for TBI survivors.

Head injuries lead to lifelong struggles

The Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA) defines traumatic brain injury as “an impairment of brain function, or any other sign of brain pathology, caused by an external force.”

Head injuries often have devastating long-term consequences long after the obvious external injuries have healed. In fact, brain damage is the leading cause of death for children and adults under 45. Every year, approximately 2.5 million people experience TBI, and 50,000 of them are fatal. About 80,000 traumatic brain injuries result in permanent disability.

Causes of TBI include:

• Falls, especially in the elderly
• Head shots/assault
• Motor vehicle collisions
• Motorcycle collisions
• Bicycle collisions
• Collisions between pedestrians
• Gunshot
• Domestic/child abuse
• Military explosion injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can range from mild (for example, a concussion) to severe (a gunshot to the head). Severe head trauma can lead to coma or paralysis, permanent brain damage or loss of vision, or the inability to perform basic life tasks (going to the bathroom, walking, talking, reading, etc.) without assistance. Brain injury survivors may have problems with memory and logic, interacting with others, sleeping or controlling their bladder, using their five senses to process information or regulating emotional behavior. And these are just a few examples.

Related: Traumatic brain injuries, even those labeled ‘mild’, also increase the risk of dementia

Children and the elderly are affected differently by a TBI than average adults. Because the brains of younger people are still forming, children who have suffered a traumatic brain injury may be unable to develop fully into functioning adults. in an older person with existing health conditions, a TBI may go entirely unnoticed, especially after a car accident or fall.

Because a TBI can affect virtually any part of cognitive or motor function, diagnosing a brain injury can be difficult. Warning signs of a TBI include, but are certainly not limited to:

• Clear fluid leaking from the ears or nose
• Problems with balance, coordination or speech
• Blurred vision and slurred speech
• Slow pulse, lethargy, or muscle weakness
• Ringing in the ears or vomiting
• Inappropriate social or emotional behavior
• New problems with math
• fear of heights
• Tired
• Depression
• Anxiety

Seek immediate medical attention if you or someone near you has suffered a blow to the head or severe head shaking and has any of these symptoms.

What treatments are currently available for TBI?

The only available remedy for patients with moderate or severe TBI is rehabilitation. Physical and cognitive therapists help victims learn new ways to perform activities of daily living (ADLs) after their brain injury has made them unable to do as before. Some brain injury survivors will be able to live independently with regular outpatient visits; others may need to be in assisted living for the rest of their lives.

The first step in the recovery of any TBI victim is “acute rehabilitation”. It is an inpatient-only treatment in which a team of specialists helps patients with their ADLs, including eating, going to the toilet, talking, walking, getting dressed, brushing their teeth and performing other tasks. basic.

After healing enough to progress, patients may be admitted to a post-acute transitional facility and undergo at least six hours of therapy per day, with an emphasis on regaining as much independence as possible. Those not as advanced can opt for slower paced sub-treble programs.

Successful patients may end up being treated during the day and going home in the evening, then eventually going home for good and only returning for regular outpatient rehabilitation.

TCC and Motor Vehicle Accidents

Although falls are the leading cause of TBI overall, road accidents, including accidents involving pedestrians, bicycle accidents and motorcycle accidents, are the leading cause of fatal traumatic brain injury.

Motor vehicle accidents due to reckless drivers are among the most common and most easily preventable causes of traumatic brain injury in San Francisco, California and throughout the United States. When the actions of a careless driver cause you or a loved one to have TBI, it is you and your family who will suffer from loss of cognitive function, loss of independence, loss of income, loss of mental and physical health and possibly even loss of life.

Traumatic brain injury can be devastating for the person who suffers it as well as for their entire family. For a brain injury lawyer, BITs can be much harder to prove than other types of bodily injury, as symptoms vary widely and can often take weeks, months, or years to reach maximum healing. Additionally, head injuries are usually not visible to the naked eye and very specialized diagnostic tests are most often required to demonstrate brain injury.

If you or a member of your family have been injured in a car, bicycle, motorcycle or pedestrian accident and you suspect a traumatic brain injury (TBI), you should consult an attorney experienced in diagnosis, medicine, dynamics and processing. of the BIT. AT Choulos, Choulos & Wyle, we work with a team of neurologists, neuropsychologists, biomechanical engineers, vocational rehabilitation experts, physiatrists, economists, psychologists and other experts who are necessary to diagnose and prove the full nature and extent of our client’s traumatic brain injury, what treatment was needed, what treatment is likely to be needed in the future, and what the ultimate disability and loss of cognitive function and income will be.

Please Contact us through our website https://www.ccwlawyers.com, or call one of our partners, Claude Wyle 415-432-7290 or George Choulos 415-432-7299 directly for your free legal consultation. Although our office is based in San Francisco, CA, we gladly offer Zoom meetings for all clients throughout California, and are happy to help you determine if you have a good case.