Credit: James Heilman MD/Wikimedia Commons
Brain injury and concussion victims – and the brain injury lawyer that represents them – have reason for optimism at the start of 2017, thanks to a pair of Canadian research teams. Two separate developments – one out of Quebec and one via London, Ontario – produced new insights which may help doctors diagnose concussions and track the recovery of brain injury victims.
The first breakthrough was revealed in a study led by Catherine Duclos of the Université de Montréal, which found a close link between the recovery of cognitive functionality and healthy sleep habits in TBI patients.
The second development came from researchers at Western University and the Lawson Health Research Institute, who announced a new, simple blood test that can determine with 90 per cent accuracy whether a person has suffered a concussion.
Sleep Patterns and TBI
In Montreal, researchers studied 30 adults hospitalized with acute traumatic brain injuries from a number of causes, from sports injuries to car accidents. The study aimed to discern whether any connection existed between the patient’s recovery process and their sleep patterns.
“Our results showed that when the brain has not sufficiently recovered a certain level of consciousness, it is also unable to generate a 24-hour sleep-wake cycle and consolidated nighttime sleep,” the report stated.
In other words, patients who scored low on the Rancho Los Amigos scale, which rates cognitive function on a scale of 1 to 8, also experienced difficulty sleeping through the night and had trouble maintaining consistent sleep patterns. As the patients regained their cognitive functionality, their sleeping habits improved.
“Sleep and functional cognition in these patients are like two sides of the same coin,” wrote Dr. Andrea Soddu of the Brain and Mind Institute at Western University about the study. “They’re both very informative and they’re important to monitor.”
The research suggests that monitoring sleep patterns may be a valuable tool in tracking TBI victims’ recovery, and could yield information that would improve personalization of care.
Blood Testing for Concussion Diagnosis
The team of researchers at Western University and the Lawson Health Research Institute, led by Dr. Douglas Fraser, are bullish about their innovative concussion diagnosis test.
Using the new technique, blood can be drawn from a person up to 72 hours after their head injury. The test measures more than 170 brain chemicals that change when a brain injury is incurred.
“We take a vial of blood, we do the work in the lab, we run it through the mathematics and it tells us (if someone is) very likely to be concussed or very likely not concussed,” Mark Daley, associate vice president of research at Western University, told CTV News.
“The advantages are it takes away the guessing,” added Dr. Fraser. “So right away we would know if somebody has truly had a concussion.”
Should the accuracy of the test be confirmed, it would help doctors diagnose brain injuries in a much timelier manner than is common today. It could also inform injury victims of whether they should contact a brain injury lawyer.
The team that developed the test hopes it will become a widely-adopted diagnostic tool in the coming years.
Contact a brain injury lawyer at Neinstein Personal Injury Lawyers
Medical innovations are always reason for optimism, but even the most ground-breaking discoveries do little to improve the lives of people suffering from brain injuries today. If you or a member of your family has been injured in a serious accident, contact a Neinstein Personal Injury Lawyers brain injury lawyer right away. Our team can help you understand your legal situation and advise you on your road to recovery.
Greg Neinstein
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