Women During Their Child-Bearing Years May Recover More Slowly from a Mild TBI Than Men

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• Dr. James Kelly is professor of Neurosurgery and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine and associate director of the Colorado Area Health Education Center System. This is BrainLine's exclusive interview with Dr. Kelly recorded on July 11, 2008. Transcript of the program here. Dr. James Kelly Talks About Areas of the Brain Affected by Concussion
• Transcript of this video. Welcome to the first in a series of webcasts on traumatic brain injury, hosted by Doris McMillon. Concussion: Understanding Mild Traumatic Brain Injury will help you understand what a concussion is and what to expect during recovery. We are pleased to feature the following distinguished guests:
  • Dr. Jim Kelly, Professor of Neurosurgery and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine
  • Dr. Aditya Bhagwat, Clinical Neuropsychologist from Walter Reed Army Medical Center
  • Lesley LeMasurier, a college senior at the University of Colorado who was training with the United States Ski Team until the toll of cumulative mild TBIs ended her ski career

  Panelist Bios

  James P. Kelly, MA, MD, FAAN
  Dr. Kelly is Professor of Neurosurgery and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine and Associate Director of the Colorado Area Health Education Center System. He graduated cum laude with a BA from Western Michigan University, with a major in Psychology and minor in Chemistry before obtaining his MA, also at WMU, in Clinical Psychology. He earned his medical degree from Northwestern University. Kelly specializes in all aspects of traumatic brain injury research and clinical care. His scientific publications and editorials have appeared in numerous medical journals, and he is invited to speak on a variety of neurological topics across the United States and abroad. Among countless other affiliations, positions, and publications, he was lead author of the Colorado and American Academy of Neurology Guidelines for the Management of Sports Concussion, and a co-author of the Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC), which is the most widely used sideline mental status test in sports. Dr. Kelly is a member of the Colorado State Boxing Commission and is the consulting neurologist to the National Hockey League Players Association, to the Aspen Skiing Company, and to the US Department of Defense for blast injury and concussion. He is Chairman of the Defense Health Board's Traumatic Brain Injury External Advisory Subcommittee for military clinical care, research, and education. He maintains an active outpatient and inpatient practice at the University of Colorado Hospital. Aditya A. Bhagwat, PhD, ABPP-CN
  Dr. Bhagwat is a board certified Clinical Neuropsychologist currently working in the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center (DVBIC) at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC. He completed his undergraduate studies in Psychology at McGill University, his doctoral work in Counseling Psychology at The Ohio State University, and a postdoctoral fellowship in Clinical Neuropsychology through the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Washington, DC, and Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Dr. Bhagwat served as a commissioned officer in the United States Air Force for seven years before joining the DVBIC, where he is privileged to be able to continue serving military service members who have suffered brain injuries. Lesley LeMasurier
  A senior at University of Colorado at Boulder (CU), Lesley LeMasurier grew up skiing in Virginia until age twelve, when she moved north to attend Burke Mountain Academy, a ski racing school in Vermont. In the spring of 2003, she earned a spot on the United States Alpine Development Ski Team. Over the course of the two years (2001 – 2003) prior to joining the US Team, she suffered four concussions, and began struggling with poor balance, coordination, and strength on the left side of her body. She also began suffering from migraines and insomnia. Despite these symptoms, she accepted the spot on the team. But after many crashes resulting in a fifth concussion, a broken right leg, and torn ligaments in her left knee in early 2005, she left the development team to focus on her health. An English major with a minor in Ethnic Studies, she is also a member of the CU Varsity Ski Team, but given her history of mild TBI, she is medically ineligible to compete. However, she continues her relationship with athletics by assisting with ski team training sessions, mentoring freshman student-athletes in the athletic department at CU, and serving as a board member and the athlete representative for the Shelley Glover Ski Education Foundation. She plans to pursue an MFA in writing upon completion of her undergraduate studies. About BrainLine Webcasts We've launched BrainLine's webcast series to keep you informed — on an ongoing basis — about preventing, treating, and living with traumatic brain injury. Listen, watch, and learn from top experts in the field — from neurosurgeons and speech pathologists to long-time caregivers and individuals living with TBI. Concussion: Understanding Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
• What's the difference between sobriety and recovery? Hear one woman's experience. Transcript of this video. Jan Brown Explains What Recovery Looks Like

A brief summary of current research.

Sex Differences in Outcome after Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Bazarian, JJ, Blyth, B, Mookerjee, S, He, H, & McDermott, MP (2010). Journal of Neurotrauma, 27(3): 527-539.

Three months after mild TBI, males had significantly lower chances of having post-concussive symptoms than females. These findings were most significant when comparing men and women when the women were of child-bearing age. Researchers suggest that this pattern of peak disability for females during the child-bearing years might be related to disruption of hormone production. The study also showed that there was no significant difference in the number of days it took both men and women to return to normal activities, or into the number of work days missed.

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