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Using animal models in the lab to study the mechanisms of blast-related brain injury, researchers like Dr. Lee Goldstein are feeling optimistic that their findings will lead to viable treatments.

Dr. Lee Goldstein explains how the axons, capillaries, and blood vessels in the brain are sheared when a "bobblehead" head on a rigid neck accelerates back and forth.

In recent wars, there has been more programmatic effort to treat and evaluate soldiers with TBI and PTSD. But are these issues any better resolved than they were 30, 50, 100 years ago?

It can take hours from the time someone sustains a moderate to severe TBI for doctors to diagnose, test, and attain consent to use an experimental drug like methamphetamine.

"The difference between poison and a cure is the dose," so explains Dr. David Poulsen about methamphetamine as a treatment for TBI.

Dr. Geoffrey Ling talks about what it would take to duplicate the military's top-notch standard of care for TBI in the civilian sector.

Dr. Geoffrey Ling talks about the use of the Military Acute Concussion Exam — a simple, standardized tool for first providers.

As a researcher and clinician, Dr. Geoffrey Ling knows that research needs to be fast and efficient because patients are waiting now!

Although other treatments for second impact syndrome are being studied, the two hallmark treatments now are rest and removal from play. They should not be underestimated.

Pediatrician Rachel Berger talks about her research on blood biomarkers that could be used in the emergency setting to test for brain injury in babies and young children.

Unlike adults, children with a brain injury may not manifest any issues until they fail to reach a new developmental stage. Earlier intervention is always advisable, but diagnosis can be tricky.

Both CTs and MRIs come with risks — from sedative drugs to levels of radiation. Depending on the severity of brain injury, parents and doctors should always consider the risk-benefit ratio.