Super Bowl 2012: Football Coaches and Players Need to Get Health Issues Through their Heads
The Washington Post / February 3, 2012
Each time BenJarvus Green-Ellis lines up behind Tom Brady in Sunday’s Super Bowl, the Patriots running back will fasten a special chin strap to his helmet, featuring an impact indicator designed to help detect the probability of concussions. During a commercial break, television viewers will be shown a promotional message from the NFL touting the advances the league has made in player safety. Without question, the NFL has made health issues a higher priority in recent years. Commissioner Roger Goodell has earned genuine respect for what he has done to protect players in both the short and long term. Equipment is better. Rules are stricter — and they’re more stringently enforced.
Computerized Tests for Concussions May Be Unreliable
National Public Radio / February 3, 2012
Schools worried about concussions increasingly use computerized tests to tell if a student athlete has a brain injury. But new research says those tests aren't reliable enough to diagnose concussion, or to tell if it's safe to return to play. The researchers looked at research on one computerized neuropsychologist test, called ImPACT, that is widely used by colleges and high schools. (Here's one NPR story on how high schools use ImPACT to assess concussions.) It's also used by the National Football League and National Hockey League.
'They Use You Up': Hall of Famer Dorsett Suing NFL
The Boston Globe / February 3, 2012
The helmet-to-helmet shot knocked Tony Dorsett out cold in the second quarter of a 1984 Cowboys-Eagles game, the hardest hit he ever took during his Hall of Fame NFL career. "It was like a freight train hitting a Volkswagen," Dorsett says now. "Did they know it was a concussion?" he asks rhetorically during an interview with The Associated Press. "They thought I was half-dead."
Insurance Firms, NHL Face Off over Concussions
CTV-Ottawa / February 3, 2012
With the number of concussions growing in the National Hockey League, insurance companies are considering throwing the financial burden back on the league's teams. More than 60 NHL players are sidelined with head injuries this season including Pittsburgh Penguin captain Sidney Crosby. Now insurance companies specializing in sports say that the league's 30 teams will have to absorb the risk of million-dollar contracts alone as the number of players sidelined increases.
Mind-Reading Advance Lets Brain Scientists 'Eavesdrop' on Thoughts
The Huffington Post / February 2, 2012
Scientists already know how to see into your mind's eye, and now they can hear the voices in your head. In a new paper published in PLoS Biology, researchers present evidence showing that they can track the brain activity of a person listening to spoken words and use it to reconstruct the words. Has Big Brother arrived? Not quite. The University of California, Berkeley scientists behind the study didn't actually read minds. They only "eavesdropped" on words that subjects were actually hearing. But it may not be so hard to apply the research to words we imagine. "There is some evidence that hearing the sound and imagining the sound activate similar areas of the brain," said study co-author Brian N. Pasley, a post-doctoral researcher at the university.
Lawyers Assert NFL Needs to Do More to Address Needs of Players Who Suffer Concussions
New York Dailly News / February 2, 2012
As the New York Giants and the New England Patriots prepare for their Super Bowl showdown amid great hype and fanfare, another battle is being waged off the field which is not spoken about all that publicly. While the National Football League's management of traumatic brain injuries has been duplicitous at best, the current groundswell of class-action lawsuits will neither provide essential assistance for brain damaged players nor protect those on the field. They do not redress the league's deliberate misconduct denying players' contract disability benefits, but rather aim to penalize the league for morally reprehensible conduct - failing to design safe concussion management protocol. Failure to acknowledge scientific evidence and institute proper return-to-play protocol is not equivalent to legal liability. The failure to fulfill the terms of a guaranteed benefit plan, however, does expose the league to liability.
Panetta, Dempsey: Chiarelli Inspired All
US Department of Defense / February 1, 2012
The Defense Department and the Army said goodbye today to a general known for his leadership and his innovation, but who may be best remembered for his focus on advancing brain injury treatment and mental health care. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were among hundreds who gathered today at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall’s Summerall Field to celebrate the career of Army Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, Army vice chief of staff, as he retired following 40 years of service. As the son of a World War II Silver Star recipient, Chiarelli “exemplified the values of his father: of patriotism, of courage, of resilience, of dedication,” the secretary said.
Sidney Crosby Had Neck Injury in Addition to Concussion
The Washington Post / February 1, 2012
An independent specialist contacted to review recent medical tests taken on Sidney Crosby found no evidence of a past or present neck fracture but verified that Crosby is suffering from a soft-tissue injury of the neck, that could be causing neurological symptoms.... Dr. Robert S. Bray has treated Crosby with an injection to alleviate swelling in the C1-2 joint of the neck and will be overseeing his progression with therapists. Doctors say the symptoms of a soft-tissue neck injury are similar to concussion symptoms.
One Soldier's Progress Against Traumatic Brain Injury
ProPublica / January 31, 2012
When Army Sgt. Victor Medina returned home from Iraq in the summer of 2009, his life was a shambles. His tour had been cut short after he suffered a concussion during a roadside blast. Though his injury wasn't visible, he struggled with balance and noticed that his ability to read, think and even talk had changed for the worse. But in the spring of 2011, Medina became one of the first patients at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence, the military's $65 million, state-of-the-art treatment center for brain-injured soldiers.
NFL Super Bowl Ad Will Stress Safety
The New York Times / January 31, 2012
To the usual lineup of beer and car commercials on Super Bowl Sunday, add this: one about player safety. For the first time, the N.F.L., currently the target of more than a dozen lawsuits accusing it of deliberately concealing information about the effects on players of repeated hits to the head, will use one minute of its own commercial time during its signature event to address player safety, its most critical and sobering problem.
For Soldier Disfigured in War, a Way to Return to the World
The New York Times / January 31, 2012
Specialist Joey Paulk awoke from a coma in a Texas hospital three weeks after he was burned nearly to death in Afghanistan. Wrapped in bandages from head almost to toe, he immediately saw his girlfriend and mother, and felt comforted. Then he glanced at his hands, two balls of white gauze, and realized that he had no fingers. So it began: the shock of recognition. Next came what burn doctors call “the mirror test.” As he was shuffling through a hallway at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, he passed a large mirror that he had turned away from before. This time he steeled himself and looked.
A New Target in Fighting Brain Disease: Metals
The Wall Street Journal / January 31, 2012
Research into how iron, copper, zinc and other metals work in the brain may help unlock some of the secrets of degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Iron and copper appear to accumulate beyond normal levels in the brains of people with these diseases, and a new, Australian study published Sunday shows reducing excess iron in the brain can alleviate Alzheimer's-like symptoms—at least in mice. A genetic mutation related to regulating iron is linked to ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease. Zinc, on the other hand, appears to impair memory if its levels get too low or if it gets into a brain region where it doesn't belong, as it can with traumatic brain injury.
CNN Documentary Looks at NC Prep Football Death
Charlotte Observer / January 30, 2012
Greenville Rose High runner Jaquan Waller ran into the line during a football game against Wilmington Hoggard in 2008 and was tackled. The hit was not excessively hard. It looks totally benign when seen on film. The play was one of football's most basic and the tackle would not have been noteworthy except for the consequences. Waller had suffered a concussion in practice two days before and returned to physical activities before his concussion had healed. The seemingly routine tackle resulted in his brain swelling and bleeding and led to his death.
A League-Wide Problem: HIding Concussions
Chicago Tribune / January 30, 2012
The NFL has created a culture, Hunter Hillenmeyer says, that conspires against protecting players. "The system they control has every incentive, for players, coaches, trainers, equipment managers and even some doctors, aligned to keep players on the field and injuries, especially concussions, as downplayed as possible," said Hillenmeyer, the former Bears linebacker. Rule changes have been designed to reduce blows to the head and protocol for players who have suffered head injuries has changed significantly in just the last three years. But the last thing players want is to be labeled as prone to concussions.
Concussions Must Be Recognized, Treated Appropriately: Pediatricians
The Montreal Gazette / January 27, 2012
Parents and doctors need to treat concussions for what they are — brain injuries with potentially catastrophic consequences, the nation's pediatricians are warning. In a new position statement, the Canadian Paediatric Society says concussions are too common in youth sports and that hits to the head, checking from behind, fighting or checking outright in younger ages groups should be eliminated.
Concussions Insurance Aimed at High School Athletes
The Seattle Times / January 27, 2012
As awareness grows of the grave dangers of concussions, coaches and parents across the nation are searching for ways to better manage these brain injuries in young athletes. Financial giant Wells Fargo is pioneering a program in Sacramento, Calif., that creates a new insurance package that provides concussion testing and medical care for high school athletes. It's a level of diagnosis and treatment historically available only to the pros.
Couple Rebuilds Their Marriage After Amnesia
CBS News / January 26, 2012
The romance of Joan and Scott Bolzan was All-American. A football player and a gymnast, they fell in love as teenagers, and were college sweethearts. "At 18, he was the big man on campus. It was fun to be with this big, secure guy, and he was a lot of fun with me," Joan said. "I just appreciated his humor, strength and courage." After playing two years in the NFL, Scott married Joan and they welcomed two children, Grant and Taylor. He worked as a pilot and founded an aviation company, providing the family with a comfortable lifestyle.
In Music, Healing
The Washington Post / January 26, 2012
fter a rocket attack outside Nasiriyah, Iraq, shattered three bones in his spine, Kenneth Sargent’s doctors told him he’d spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. Sixteen months later, he’s walking. And he wants to write a song about it.
Sargent’s phone is full of Prince hits. He likes Merle Haggard, too. But he doesn’t care whether his song is R&B or country. He just wants it to be about how America doesn’t understand its soldiers after a decade of war.
GAO: DoD Fails to Detail Mental Health Spending
NavyTimes / January 26, 2012
A new report from a congressional watchdog agency raises concerns about the Defense Department’s accounting of $2.7 billion marked for treating and researching psychological health issues and traumatic brain injuries. The report released Wednesday by the Government Accountability Office says DoD has not provided reports required by law detailing how those funds were spent. The money was distributed between fiscal 2007 and fiscal 2010. The GAO described as “unreliable” the obligations data — information that gives an overview of what contracts and programs the funds support — in the reports.
Childhood Head Injuries Can Improve Over Time
WebMD / January 25, 2012
Serious head injuries in kids can affect development for years, and parents worry their child may never recover fully or get worse. Now, Australian researchers who followed a small group of children for 10 years after head injuries from falls or car accidents have some answers. They find, not surprisingly, that severe brain injury is associated with the poorest recovery. However, they also find an ''injury threshold'' beneath which children with less severe brain injuries may escape serious problems. They make developmental progress, although they may never catch up entirely with peers.
Alex Ovechkin Suspended Three Games for Illegal Hit on Zbynek Michalek in Caps' Loss
The New York Times / January 24, 2012
Alex Ovechkin received his longest suspension to date Monday when the Washington Capitals’ captain was banned three games without pay for his illegal hit on the Penguins’ Zbynek Michalek, a blow the NHL ruled “recklessly” made contact with the Pittsburgh defenseman’s head. It is the third time in the past three seasons Ovechkin has been suspended by the league for hits the league deemed dangerous. The hard-hitting left wing has also been fined twice.
Severe Brain Injury When Young May Have Long-Term Effects
US News & World Report / January 24, 2012
Although many people believe young children are extremely resilient after they are seriously hurt, the opposite may be true with traumatic brain injuries. Two Australian studies looked at the impact of traumatic brain injury in children as young as 2 years, and found that these injuries affected cognitive function, IQ and even behavior for some time. However, the researchers also found that recovery from traumatic brain injury can continue for years after the initial injury. And, a child's home environment can positively influence recovery if the child lives in a stable, caring home.
An Energy Shot for the Brain
The Wall Street Journal / January 24, 2012
For people looking for a dose of mental edge, a purported brain enhancer called citicoline is popping up in beverages and dietary supplements. "What you drink when you want to think," says the label of Nawgan, a drink from Nawgan Products LLC. The St. Louis company's website invites consumers to track their mental performance with an online memory and focus test. Go GungHo Inc.'s gel packets carry the slogan, "Ninja like focus" and the Orem, Utah, company hopes its newly introduced product will be popular with gamers. Citicoline is an organic molecule found naturally in the body, particularly the brain. Scientists believe citicoline speeds up formation of brain cell membranes and may boost production of neurotransmitters essential to brain function.
For Giffords, House Comeback Is One Too Many
The New York Times / January 23, 2012
For months, Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head in an assassination attempt last year, signaled that returning to Congress, something she desperately longed to do, was in the realm of the possible. She listened pensively as her friend, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, briefed her on the conflict in Libya, and she expressed in clipped phrases her views on the matter. She cast a vote to raise the nation’s debt ceiling. Her Congressional aides continued to churn out news releases outlining her positions and hold community meetings, and she and her husband gave an interview to ABC News in which she demonstrated her improving ability to speak. But Ms. Giffords, a moderate Democrat from Arizona whose remarkable comeback stirred the nation, decided in recent days that she could not continue her recovery and still serve as a member of Congress. On Sunday, she announced that she would step down.
Check Your Head: Does Testing Athletes for Concussion with Fancy Software Do Any Good?
Slate / January 23, 2012
The ad has all the elements of an after-school public service announcement: somber adults reading scripted messages, wholesome kids urging their peers to take a looming threat seriously, and a clever slogan—“Together, we can bench concussions.” At first glance, the Protecting Athletes through Concussion Education program looks like an earnest attempt to raise awareness about the dangers of head injuries in team sports. The campaign highlights the problem and provides athletes, parents, and schools with something tangible that they can do—sign up their kids for a 20-minute test of their cognitive abilities, as a baseline measure in case they ever get conked on the head. The Dick’s Sporting Goods retail chain will donate the costs of ImPACT testing for to up to one million at-risk kids around the nation.
Reduction of Stigma to Seeking Help Has Begun, Says Chiarelli
Army.mil / January 23, 2012
The Army released a study today on behavioral health and reported that the number of suicides decreased this past year and more Soldiers are seeking treatment for their problems. The report "Generating Health and Discipline in the Force, Ahead of the Strategic Reset," was discussed at a Pentagon press conference by Gen. Peter Chiarelli, Army vice chief of staff. The three-year study outlined the problem of suicide in the Army and related issues of substance abuse, spouse abuse and child abuse.
British Troops Have Lower Rate of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
US News & World Report / January 23, 2012
British troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have lower rates of minimal traumatic brain injury than American troops, new research finds. In addition, psychological factors present before troops are deployed to combat zones have a major effect on lasting symptoms in military personnel with this condition. The findings appear in the January edition of the Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, a special issue on minimal traumatic brain injury.
Despite Burke's 'Fluke' Death, Risks Being Reduced in Superpipe
The Vancouver Sun / January 23, 2012
The death of daredevil pipe skier Sarah Burke might well have been a freak accident that resulted from a seemingly innocuous training run fall at Park City, Utah. But it is still likely to re-ignite the debate over safety in the halfpipe, or superpipe as many of the U-shaped snow-and-ice venues now are called as their walls have climbed to 22 feet. Two years ago, American snowboarder Kevin Pearce sustained a traumatic brain injury during a training accident in the same Park City pipe in which Burke, a Squamish resident, fell and ruptured an artery that carries blood to her brain.
Sarah Burke's Death: Can Gear Keep Up with Skiers?
Discovery News / January 23, 2012
As friends, family and fans of freestyle skier Sarah Burke mourn the athlete's death from a recent superpipe accident, the tragedy has drawn attention to the dangers of a daredevil sport. Burke's death, which followed a routine 540-degree flat spin and what started out as an innocuous landing, has also raised new questions about what might make high-flying snow sports safer. Rules already require airbags on pipes to protect skiers and snowboarders during training. And athletes must wear helmets. But is that enough? Could better equipment prevent gravity-defying athletes from succumbing to concussions, traumatic brain injuries and worse?
Kevin Pearce Reflects on Sarah Burke's Death
USA Today / January 23, 2012
As news broke of Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke's death, snowboarder Kevin Pearce found himself personally connected to an athlete he had never met. Two years ago Pearce was an Olympic hopeful for the 2010 Vancouver Games and one of Shaun White's biggest competitors. On Dec. 31, 2009, he fell on the same pipe as Burke — the Eagle Superpipe at Park City Mountain Resort in Utah — during training. Pearce suffered a traumatic brain injury, leaving him temporarily unable to walk and talk.
Sarah Burke, Freestyle Skier, Dies from Injuries in Training
The New York Times / January 20, 2012
Hurtling down a towering halfpipe on a pair of skis, no maneuver is routine. But Sarah Burke had done this one, the 540 Flat Spin, countless times. Just over a week ago, though, as Burke, a top Canadian freestyle skier from Ontario, neared the end of a normal training run inside a 22-foot halfpipe at a resort in Park City, Utah, something went wrong. Burke completed the move and then flipped over — awkwardly, but seemingly innocuously — hitting her head on the ground. She then lost her pulse and stopped breathing.
Ex-Players Accuse NFL of Fraud Over Concussions
CBS News / January 20, 2012
NFL officials conspired to hide evidence linking concussions to dementia and brain disease, seven retired players charge in the latest lawsuit filed on the subject. The fraud and negligence lawsuit filed in Philadelphia accuses the National Football League of publishing nonscientific papers written by biased members of its medical committee, while denouncing valid research that suggested a link. The plaintiffs include former Philadelphia Eagles Ron Solt, who suffers from substantial memory loss, and Rich Miano, a University of Hawaii assistant coach who is asymptomatic but seeks medical monitoring.
"Moving Forward" from Traumatic Brain Injury
YouTube / January 20, 2012
This full-length film has been over a year in the making following the journey of Danny Toumarkine after suffering from a traumatic brain injury on January 3rd of 2011. Danny and his brother Conor had shared a dream of creating a season long snowboarding video for nearly 15 years. After starting a production company called Shreddy Times in 2007, together they documented Danny's path to stardom within the snowboard industry. While filming in Montana, with a group of close friends, Danny fell on a routine jump and hit his head. After nearly two weeks in a medically induced coma, four brain surgeries and thirty-three days later, Danny was discharged from the hospital.
Vengeance Helmet, Schutt Sports' New Model, Raises Eyebrows
The Huffington Post / January 19, 2012
According to a recent study, Schutt Sports makes very good football helmets. Its marketing is raising a few eyebrows, though. In an age of heightened awareness about the dangers of football concussions, Schutt last week introduced a new helmet it named Vengeance. "NFL and college-level football players will soon have the opportunity to face their foes head-on with Vengeance," the press release reads. Doctors who treat head injuries and a former player expressed surprise at the combative tone of the helmet's name, saying they believe it sends the wrong message.
Matt Hendricks Quickly Settles Score with Rene Bourque
The Washington Post / January 19, 2012
It didn’t take long for the Capitals’ Matt Hendricks to settle a score with Montreal’s Rene Bourque. Just 1:15 into Wednesday’s 3-0 victory at Bell Centre, the winger challenged Bourque and the two squared off. Bourque, of course, knocked Washington’s leading scorer Nicklas Backstrom out of the lineup indefinitely with a vicious elbow to the head on Jan. 3. Hendricks said there was no discussion with Bourque on the ice before the fight, and added that the Habs winger seemed to know what was coming.
Are Ice Hockey 'Enforcers' the Toughest Guys in Sport?
BBC / January 18, 2012
Ice hockey is notorious for brawling - at least in North America's National Hockey League. The role of the enforcers, who do most of the fighting, is the focus of a new film, Goon. But there is growing evidence that some players suffer long-term damage and questions are being asked whether enforcers pay a terrible price.
Traumatic Brain Injury May Be Treated by Transplanted Human Stem Cells
The Toronto Star / January 18, 2012
Research at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston may hold a key for future treatment of traumatic brain injury. The study, published online in the Journal of Neurotrauma, has found that transplanting human neuron stem cells into rats, who had suffered traumatic brain injury, reversed the damage and allowed for the filaments of nerve cells in the brain to reconnect. “After brain injury some nerve cells are lost, but often the filaments of the nerve cells are retracted,” said Dr. Ping Wu, lead author of the paper and a professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch. “Their function is to make connection between nerve cells. These connections are important for learning and memory.”
Live Music at Fresno's VA Hospital Makes a Big Difference
Los Angeles Times / January 17, 2012
The hospital was built in the years after World War II. Its ceilings are low, corridors long and corners sharp — all possible stress triggers for those who have been in combat. Not to mention that a hospital waiting room can make anyone edgy. But the Veterans Affairs hospital in Fresno has found a way to make the experience easier: live music.
Giffords May Get Better Brain-Injury Care than Most of Her Constituents
ProPublica / January 17, 2012
In the minutes, hours and weeks after U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot at a meeting with her constituents in Tucson, Ariz., the public witnessed some of the very best brain-injury care in the country. In the year following the shooting, Giffords herself has championed the rights of others -- whether injured by gunfire or car crashes -- to get the same care she continues to receive. Holding town hall meetings and panel discussions, she has argued that everyone should get the full spectrum of treatments: from the intensive trauma care that saved her life to the rehabilitation therapies that are, albeit slowly, helping her return to living it.
Can Female Sex Hormones Beat Brain Damage? Doctors Believe Progesterone May Have Protective Effect
Daily Mail / January 17, 2012
A major new trial has begun in the UK using the sex hormone progesterone to treat brain injuries. Doctors believe the chemical — usually thought of as a female hormone — may have a protective effect on the brain, reducing swelling and improving mental recovery. Five hospitals are now testing the new approach on patients with traumatic brain injuries caused by road accidents, sports injuries, falls and assaults.
Uncertainty Clouds Recovery of Skier Burke in Utah
ABC News / January 17, 2012
Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke's agent and her publicist were teary-eyed at a hospital Monday as they tried to explain the lack of any prognosis report for the Olympic favorite. Burke, 29, was seriously injured Jan. 10 in a training accident at the superpipe in Park City, Utah, and six days later remained sedated on a breathing tube as doctors tested her brain functions. Reporters gathered at Salt Lake City hospital Monday for what was expected to be a discussion by doctors of Burke's most recent neurological tests and assessments.
Sidney Crosby to Meet with Chiropractic Neurologist as Concussion-Like Symptoms Linger
The Washington Post / January 17, 2012
Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby will meet with a specialist this week because of lingering concussion-like symptoms. Crosby hasn’t played since Dec. 5 following a recurrence of the symptoms that sidelined him for more than 10 months last year. The team says Crosby will work with chiropractic neurologist Dr. Ted Carrick, who treated Crosby for similar symptoms last summer. The 24-year-old star skated with his teammates for the first time in more than a month last Friday, a first step in what could be another long comeback. He continues to deal with dizziness and headaches and doctors have not cleared him to exert himself at a high level.
Should a Hit Like Whitner's Be Legal?
The New York Times / January 17, 2012
A Fifth Down reader, RM from Honolulu, sent this comment after the 49ers-Saints game: "The hit on Pierre Thomas by Whitner was CLEARLY an intentional helmet-to-helmet hit on a defenseless receiver with vicious intent. It was a penalty and deserves fines, not praise. Why haven’t any of the analysts and so-called experts pointed this out? This was THE pivotal play in the game because it took out a key component of the Saints’ offense and it has been hailed as such, but it should have been a penalty. What is worse, however, is that it seriously injured Pierre Thomas." The N.F.L. later explained that Thomas was not a defenseless receiver, that he had enough time after the catch to establish himself as a runner.
Heading Soccer Balls Could Injure Brain
MSN Health / January 17, 2012
Soccer players need to use the correct techniques when "heading" -- using their unprotected head to stop or redirect the ball -- to prevent possible brain injury, researchers say. Although researchers have not yet proven a link between the sport and brain damage, Dr. Alejandro Spiotta and other experts from the Cleveland Clinic said soccer balls are moving at high speeds when they come into contact with players' heads, putting athletes at risk for a possible traumatic brain injury.
Nine of a Kind: Grills
The New York Times / January 17, 2012
A sampling of National Football League face masks.
Soldiers, Professional Athletes Share Threat from Brain Injuries
Army.mil / January 13, 2012
When Don Lee relaxes on his couch at home to take in the NFL playoffs on TV, chances are he watches the games a little bit differently than most people. Lee pays particular attention to the helmets -- the shell materials, pad systems and chin straps. He watches to see how they absorb the violent impacts to prevent concussions on the playing field. Call it an occupational hazard. Preventing head injuries is Lee's business. As a project engineer in the Headgear Thrust Area of the Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center, he focuses on keeping Soldiers from ever experiencing traumatic brain injuries, or TBI.
Football and the Fear of Concussions
The New York Times / January 13, 2012
“If football ever dies,” writes Jonah Lehrer at Grantland, “it will die from the outside in.” It will begin with nervous parents reading about brain trauma, with doctors warning about the physics of soft tissue smashing into hard bone…. The sickness will be rooted in football’s tragic flaw, which is that it inflicts concussions on its players with devastating frequency. Although estimates vary, several studies suggest that up to 15 percent of football players suffer a mild traumatic brain injury during the season.
Canadian Skier Burke Undergoes Surgery After Accident
The New York Times / January 13, 2012
Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke, who was seriously injured in a fall earlier this week, remained in critical condition at a Salt Lake City hospital on Thursday following surgery, doctors said. Considered one of the top half-pipe athletes in the world, Burke was among the early favorites to win the Olympic gold medal when freestyle halfpipe makes its debut at the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia. She has reached the podium at every career World Cup start and is a four-time champion at the X-Games. Burke, 29, was taken by air ambulance to University of Utah hospital on Tuesday after falling during a half-pipe run at Park City Mountain Resort.
Scientists Discover How Stem Cells Help Traumatic Brain Injury
Serious Injury Law / January 13, 2012
Scientists have discovered how stem cell implants are able to help heal traumatic brain injury, according to new research. A study published in the Journal of Neurotrauma reports how scientists identified key molecular mechanisms by which implanted human neural stem cells are able to aid recovery from traumatic brain injury.
First Lady Tells Military Audience of Plans to Bolster Research on Traumatic Brain Injuries
The Washington Post / January 12, 2012
First lady Michelle Obama on Wednesday told military members and veterans that more medical schools are teaming up to boost training and research on brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder. Obama told an audience at Virginia Commonwealth University that 105 U.S. medical schools and 25 schools of osteopathic medicine are bolstering their efforts to train students in treating brain injuries, PTSD and other mental-health issues affecting service members.
When Road Hazards Go from IEDs to Sunday Drivers
The New York Times / January 12, 2012
Do combat veterans experience distinctive driving problems as a result of being exposed to improvised explosive devices and highway ambushes in Iraq and Afghanistan? A number of researchers believe they do, as my article in today’s Times points out. But one issue I did not explore is the possibility that in some cases, perhaps many, the hypervigilance that many combat veterans bring home from war may in fact be beneficial behind the wheel.
Kit Parker Uncovers Mechanics of Brain Injuries
Harvard Magazine / January 12, 2012
Cabot associate professor in applied science Kevin “Kit” Parker and a team of fellow Harvard bioengineers have announced the discovery of precisely how traumatic head injuries damage brain cells, a discovery that offers new hope for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan wounded by improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Such injuries can result in death or temporary concussions that can produce dangerous hemorrhages or long-term injuries that can lead to early onset of Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s. “Imagine this blast wave is propagating through the head—like you’re thumping your Jell-O when you’re a kid,” Parker told the Boston Globe. “When it gets to these cells, the cells are stretched and compressed.”
Freestyle Star Sustains Serious Head Injury in Training
The New York Times / January 12, 2012
The potential danger presented by the high walls and slick sides of supersize halfpipes has come to the fore again, two years after the champion snowboarder Kevin Pearce sustained a traumatic head injury. The Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke, a four-time X Games champion and 2014 Olympic favorite, was seriously injured Tuesday in the 22-foot halfpipe in Park City, Utah, the same place where Pearce was injured on Dec. 31, 2009. Like Pearce, she hit her head while attempting to land a trick during training and was airlifted to University Hospital in Salt Lake City.
Crosby Set to Resume Skating
The New York Times / January 12, 2012
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is ready to resume skating. Coach Dan Bylsma said before Pittsburgh's game at the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night that Crosby will skate during the team's current road trip, which includes visits to the Florida Panthers on Friday and the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday.
Back from War, Fear and Danger Fill Driver's Seat
The New York Times / January 11, 2012
Before going to war, Susan Max loved tooling around Northern California in her maroon Mustang. A combat tour in Iraq changed all that. Back in the States, Ms. Max, an Army reservist, found herself avoiding cramped parking lots without obvious escape routes. She straddled the middle line, as if bombs might be buried in the curbs. Gray sport-utility vehicles came to remind her of the unarmored vehicles she rode nervously through Baghdad in 2007, a record year for American fatalities in Iraq. “I used to like driving,” Ms. Max, 63, said. “Now my family doesn’t feel safe driving with me.”
First Lady Tackling Medical Treatments for Vets
The Associated Press / January 11, 2012
Michelle Obama has gotten a new commitment from medical schools to boost training and research for the treatment of veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health injuries. The initiative is part of the first lady's Joining Forces campaign, which focuses on issues affecting veterans and their families. Mrs. Obama was to announce the commitment from more than 100 medical schools during an appearance Wednesday at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. The schools are agreeing to step up training for medical students in how to treat PTSD and traumatic brain injury, increase research into the conditions and share new information and best practices.
The Fragile Teenage Brain
Grantland / January 11, 2012
If the sport of football ever dies, it will die from the outside in. It won't be undone by a labor lockout or a broken business model — football owners know how to make money. Instead, the death will start with those furthest from the paychecks, the unpaid high school athletes playing on Friday nights. It will begin with nervous parents reading about brain trauma, with doctors warning about the physics of soft tissue smashing into hard bone, with coaches forced to bench stars for an entire season because of a single concussion. The stadiums will still be full on Sunday, the professionals will still play, the profits will continue. But the sport will be sick.
Sarah Burke in Coma: Freestyle Skier Injured During Training in Park City, Utah
The Huffington Post / January 11, 2012
Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke was in a coma Tuesday after crashing during a training run on the superpipe in Park City, Utah. In an email to The Associated Press, Peter Judge, CEO of the Canadian freestyle team, confirmed a report in the Toronto Globe and Mail that Burke was in a coma but didn't know what that meant for her ultimate recovery. He told AP he didn't expect any updates until early Wednesday. "What I've heard, relatively directly, is that she landed a trick down in the bottom end of the pipe, and kind of bounced, from her feet to her head," Judge told the Globe and Mail. "It wasn't anything that looked like a catastrophic fall, so I'm a bit mystified."
Baptist Working with Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome
Winston-Salem Journal / January 11, 2012
Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center are collaborating with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on a one-year study to use imaging technology to better understand post-traumatic stress syndrome and traumatic brain injury. Wake Forest Baptist is one of 35 clinical sites across the nation using the equipment. Researchers compare the images of brain activity from individuals with PTSD and/or mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) with the images from individuals without the condition to see whether particular parts of the brain function differently. "If we can find biomarkers of PTSD, there's hope that we'll be able to improve diagnosis and treatment," said Dwayne Godwin, a neuroscientist at Wake Forest Baptist and co-principal investigator on the project.
When Injuries to the Brain Tear at Hearts
The New York Times / January 10, 2012
At a crowded vigil on Sunday night in Tucson, Representative Gabrielle Giffords held her husband’s hand as she stepped up to the lectern to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. It had been one year since a shooting at a Tucson supermarket killed six people, injured 12 others and left her with a severe brain injury. Ms. Giffords’s appearance was greeted by an enthusiastic crowd that applauded her remarkable progress toward recovery. The man next to her, fighting tears, offered his own remarks. “For the past year, we’ve had new realities to live with,” said her husband, the astronaut Mark E. Kelly. “The reality and pain of letting go of the past.”
Playwright Battles for Injured Vets on Stage
National Public Radio / January 10, 2012
The more Kate Wenner heard about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the more she felt compelled to act. Wenner was struck by the thousands of US troops returning with traumatic brain injuries. To make people take notice, she wrote a stage play about troops with TBI. NPR's Daniel Zwerdling reports.
Being a Family 'In Sickness and in Health'
National Public Radio / January 10, 2012
Reporter Robert Melton suffered a traumatic brain injury in 2003. He had to relearn simple tasks, such as brushing his teeth. Host Michel Martin speaks with his wife, Page, about how she adapted to her husband's injury and built a bigger support network around him. The couple's story is featured in this week's Washington Post Magazine.
The Black Hole of Sports
The Boston Globe / January 10, 2012
“You see all those brown little things?’’ Ann McKee asked me as I looked through a microscope. I was viewing a slide sample of the brain of Dave Duerson, the Notre Dame All-American defensive back who won Super Bowls with the 1985 Chicago Bears and the 1990 New York Giants. Duerson was a Notre Dame trustee, a National Football League Man of the Year for community service, and an economics major who completed a management program at Harvard Business School. Early in his football retirement, he nearly tripled the annual sales of a meat supply company to $63.5 million.
Vision Center of Excellence Promotes Eye-Injury Research, Care
US Department of Defense / January 10, 2012
Next month will mark a major milestone in advancing care for wounded warriors suffering debilitating eye injuries with a ribbon-cutting at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. The Department of Defense/Department of Veterans Affairs Vision Center of Excellence will officially open its new headquarters at the Walter Reed facility, providing an expanded physical presence for a growing collaboration between the two agencies. The goal, explained Army Dr. (Col.) Donald Gagliano, its executive director, is to promote research and initiatives to prevent eye injuries and better diagnose and treat those suffering from them. Although often overlooked, eye injuries are one of the signature wounds of the wars over the last decade, Gagliano noted.
Giffords Ordeal Came at Dawn of New Medical Era
Houston Chronicle / January 9, 2012
When U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head one year ago, many thought there was little chance she would survive, let alone open her eyes, walk or talk. But the Arizona congresswoman had determination, abundant resources and, most importantly, a new era in brain medicine on her side. "We're at an evolution today with traumatic brain injury, much like where doctors were with cancer and heart disease some 40, 50 years ago," said Dr. Geoff Manley, chief of neurotrauma at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine. "We're just now learning that people like Giffords can not only be treated but can have meaningful recoveries."
Brain Injury Aftermath: Family Struggles as Loved One is Shuffled From Hospitals
Northwest Herald / January 9, 2012
On a sunny morning almost one year ago, Kurt Cleveland strapped three Easter baskets to the back of his Harley-Davidson. He left his Marengo home and headed to Crystal Lake for a visit with his daughter and grandchildren on the holiday. He never made it home. On his way back, Cleveland lost control of his motorcycle, and the otherwise robust 49-year-old suffered a traumatic brain injury that has left him a shell of the man he once was. His family has spent much of the past year trying to cope with the debilitating head trauma Cleveland suffered in the accident.
MLS Discusses Concussion Protocol
ESPN / January 9, 2012
Major League Soccer is looking to take the lead with the best protocol for handling concussions. Team doctors and athletic trainers from both inside and outside the sport attended the MLS Medical Symposium on Saturday.
Group Helps Families Face Changes after Brain Injuries
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / January 9, 2012
Bari York looks the same - only a tiny scar on the right side of her forehead shows a glimpse of just how much she has truly changed. "If you don't see the scar or know what happened, you may not know right away," said York, who was involved in a horrific car accident at the age of 15. It left her partially paralyzed and living with the effects of a severe traumatic brain injury. The sometimes alienating world of traumatic brain injury prompted the mother and daughter, of Muskego, to create the Brain Injury Resource Center of Wisconsin nearly a year ago.
How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body
The New York Times / January 6, 2012
On a cold Saturday in early 2009, Glenn Black, a yoga teacher of nearly four decades, whose devoted clientele includes a number of celebrities and prominent gurus, was giving a master class at Sankalpah Yoga in Manhattan. Black is, in many ways, a classic yogi: he studied in Pune, India, at the institute founded by the legendary B. K. S. Iyengar, and spent years in solitude and meditation. He now lives in Rhinebeck, N.Y., and often teaches at the nearby Omega Institute, a New Age emporium spread over nearly 200 acres of woods and gardens. He is known for his rigor and his down-to-earth style. But this was not why I sought him out: Black, I’d been told, was the person to speak with if you wanted to know not about the virtues of yoga but rather about the damage it could do.
A Family Learns the True Meaning of the Vow 'in Sickness and in Health'
The Washington Post / January 6, 2012
"It is bittersweet," Robert echoed. The girls were so young when Robert fell ill — Hope was 3 and Nell 18 months — that Page was the only one of the four who remembered those days. Page alone knew that Robert loved to work in the yard and tend the azaleas. Or that he liked to write his weekly Virginia politics column in the garage. Or that he held Hope on his lap as he read the New Yorker, letting the quiet daughter who was so much like him point to letters she recognized.
New Technologies in the Works to Detect Brain Injuries
ProPublica / January 6, 2012
Traumatic brain injuries have been called the signature injury of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, affecting more than 155,000 men and women in uniform. But these traumas don't always have outward signs, making them difficult to diagnose. Right now, tests to detect them can be expensive or require sophisticated medical equipment, such as CT scanners. The Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics, or ANAM, a computerized cognitive test the military administers to troops, has never been scientifically proven to work.
NHL Hands Down Two Suspensions
The New York Times / January 6, 2012
Calgary Flames forward Rene Bourque and Chicago Blackhawks wing Dan Carcillo may now be wishing that they had not again incurred the wrath of the N.H.L.’s disciplinary department. The two players received significant suspensions — five games for Bourque and seven for Carcillo — in response to their actions in recent games. And this is not the first suspension for either player this season. This is the third this season for Carcillo and the second for Bourque.
Capitals' Nicklas Backstrom Is Day-to-Day After Hit from Flames' Rene Bourque
The Washington Post / January 5, 2012
A day after Nicklas Backstrom was elbowed in the head by Calgary forward Rene Bourque, not much was certain about the health of the Washington Capitals’ top center. Backstrom underwent concussion testing Wednesday morning after absorbing the hit in the third period of Tuesday’s game at Verizon Center but the results were inconclusive, according to a pair of tweets by his brother Kristoffer. “Test done and the dr couldn’t tell today but a small concussion/migraine. Have to wait for tmrw and a new test,” Kristoffer Backstrom wrote in a second tweet, which has since been deleted.
Handheld Device Could Enable Quick Detection of Haematomas
The Engineer / January 5, 2012
A new handheld device could enable the quick detection of haematomas in patients with traumatic brain injuries. It uses near-infrared sensing to detect changes in blood volume in the membranes enveloping the brain and spinal cord. "When accidents that involve traumatic brain injuries occur, a speedy diagnosis followed by the proper treatment can mean the difference between life and death," said the research team in a statement, which is led by Dr Jason Riley of the Section on Analytical and Functional Biophotonics at the US National Institutes of Health.
The Military Concussions
ABC News / January 4, 2012
ABC News takes a look at the "signature" injury or Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Most Important Injury of 2012: The Concussion
Chicago Magazine / January 4, 2012
While reading up for my 12 Months, 12 Photos, 12 Stories series, I noticed a theme reoccuring in things I'd read or written about last year. Then, as I was brainstorming, I read this: One of my good and dear friends is about to be discharged with 100% disability from the Army. At 32 years old, he can’t remember what day it is, and sometimes he can’t remember if he’s back here in the states, or in Germany, or in Afghanistan where he got hurt. Traumatic Brain Injury is the signature wound of these current wars.
'Safety-First' Playgrounds Linked to Bored, Inactive Kids: Study
US News & World Report / January 4, 2012
Remember those tall, shiny, metal, sliding boards? They seemed dauntingly steep, but you took the plunge and whizzed downward. Next, you tackled the monkey bars, climbing higher and higher and hanging by your knees at the pinnacle. Playgrounds are a lot different for today's preschoolers. Low sliding boards, safer plastic climbers and fence-protected platforms are meant to prevent injury. But a preliminary study suggests an unintended result: unenthused, less active kids.