Detecting Traumatic Brain Injuries in the Living

At present, a definitive determination that a person has suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) can only be made after death. The accumulation of tau proteins that result from traumatic brain injury (TBI) are not detectable by currently accepted brain imaging techniques.

Work currently being done by scientists at UCLA may change that. As reported today by MIT Technology Review, researchers have developed a new die used in conjunction with positron emission tomography (PET), an imaging technology, to detect the accumulation of tau proteins linked to CTE and the amyloid proteins known to be markers of Alzheimer's Disease.

If proven reliable, this test could be used to evaluate the effectiveness of treatment of traumatic brain injury with hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). We look forward to reporting on the research as it progresses.

Early detection of CTE and TBI offer hope that post mortem confirmation of the disease does not. While a link between professional football and CTE has been shown in autopsies of former players, as dramatically depicted in a recent Frontline installment, further understanding of causes and treatment will be aided by a diagnostic tool that can be applied to the living. 

It is important to note that there has been nothing to suggest that this new diagnostic technique could be used to evaluate the effectiveness of hyperbaric oxygen therapy in treating other, non-traumatic, neurological conditions. Our Evidence Index presents a summary of totality of research regarding treatment of each listed neurologic condition with HBOT. For a number of neurologic conditions it is unlikely that a new diagnostic technique will reveal HBOT to be more effective than other research has demonstrated. 

As always, clearance and approval are the best indication if HBOT is useful in treating a specific condition. To assess the appropriateness of HBOT for an individual case, consultation with a qualified physician is a must.

[PET brain scan image: Jens Langner]

Use this link to watch Frontline's: League of Denial: The NFL's Concussion Crisis.

Alzheimer's News: Researchers Discover Protective Mutation That Slows Beta Amyloid Buildup

Gina Kolata in the New York Times serves up a fine explanation of an important new Alzheimer's study. The study was published today in Nature [doi:10.1038/nature11283] and conducted by a predominantly Scandinavian group representing Genentech and deCODE genetics, based in Reykjavik, Iceland. The research confirms that the buildup of beta amyloid drives the disease and identifies a rare gene mutation that slows its production and buildup. Finding the genetic key to protecting the brain against protein plaques and tangles may be a real breakthrough in the development of new drugs.

Alzheimer's disease is the seventh leading cause of death in the US, killing nearly 75,000 a year and afflicting 5.3 million.

Recently we updated our Alzheimer's page and found no evidence to support the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

[Image: Nature]

Freezer Malfunction at Harvard Tissue Bank a Setback for Autism and Other Brain Research

A freezer and alarm failure, causing severe damage to one-third of the frozen brain tissue specimens stored at one Harvard Brain Bank center at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, a collection owned by Autism Speaks, is a real setback to autism research and a wake-up call to other brain banks. The study of donated brains drives some of the most important research into autism, Alzheimer's, traumatic brain injury, and other neurological and psychiatric conditions. We have written before about the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (CSTE), a brain bank affiliated with the Boston University Medical Center and the Sports Legacy Institute at the Bedford Veterans Administration Medical Center in Bedford, Massachusetts. Several groups are investigating the Harvard incident. More in the excellent boston.com story.

[Image: Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Center]