View clinical trials related to Brain Injuries.
Filter by:The purpose of the study is to estimate the incidence of posttraumatic hypopituitarism, and to identify predisposing factors in order to establish a rational responsible socioeconomic screening program.
The purpose of this study is to determine whether hypertonic saline is as much effective as mannitol to treat intracranial hypertension after traumatic brain injury and has at least the same effects on PtiO2 and cerebral metabolism studied through microdialysis.
The investigators propose to develop quantitative automated lesion detection (QALD) procedures to identify brain damage following traumatic brain injury more accurately than is possible with a normal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. These procedures require about 1 hour of imaging in an MRI scanner. Subjects will also undergo about 2 hours of cognitive tests. The investigators will compare the results of the cognitive tests with those from MRI scanning to determine what brain regions are responsible for superior performance and for performance decrements.
The purpose of this project is to determine the effects of mild traumatic brain injury and blast exposure on the inner ear balance and central nervous systems.
Background: - Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant injury in the Armed Forces, but it is also common in the general population. This condition poses significant challenges for both diagnosis and therapy. However, the biological and neurological reasons for TBI remain poorly understood and are in need of more in-depth study. - The National Institutes of Health is collaborating with several military medical centers and research units in a multi-year study of TBI in civilian and military patients. In anticipation of these research projects, the Clinical Center s Rehabilitation Medicine Department needs to become familiar with the instruments they will likely need to evaluate this group of subjects. Objectives: - To evaluate potential test instruments in patients with TBI. - To evaluate patient tolerance of an extensive battery of assessments and the time required to complete the assessments. - To improve staff competencies on new or novel assessments of the TBI patient population Eligibility: - Individuals 18 years of age and older who have been diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury in the past 5 years. - Healthy volunteers 18 years of age and older who have had no instances of significant head trauma. Design: - This study requires approximately 3 days of outpatient or inpatient evaluation. - Subjects will undergo cognitive and neuropsychological tests, physical assessments, speech and language evaluation, and balance testing. Tests will be given orally, in writing, and on computers. The testing will be done in blocks of 2 to 3 hours, with rest periods as needed. - Subjects may undergo any or all of the following assessments and screening tools, as determined by the researchers: - Cognitive, quality of life, and functional assessments - Speech, language, and swallowing assessments - Physical functional performance and environment assessments (including balance testing) - Subjects will remain under the care of their own health care providers while participating in this study.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the neuroprotective effect of electroacupuncture pretreatment in patients undergoing cardiac surgery as an preventive sequela in a randomized and controlled clinical trial. In addition, to investigate the role of inflammatory responses in the precess of the protection.
The purpose of this study is to determine whether the plasticity of autologous intrathecal hematopoietic cells would improve the neurologic evolution of the pediatric patients with hypoxic/ischemic brain injury.
Brain injured patients are at high risk for forming blood clots in the legs and lungs. For non-brain injured trauma patients, we decrease the chances of these blood clots forming by placing the patients on a low dose of the blood thinner enoxaparin. Starting patients with a brain injury on the blood thinner is problematic, however, as this can theoretically cause the brain injury to worsen. Trauma surgeons wait a variable period of time before starting this blood thinner because waiting too long can result in the formation of these blood clots in the legs and lungs. Previous research has shown that some brain injuries which are of lower severity can have enoxaparin started at 24 hours after injury if the brain injury is stable on a repeated computed tomography (CT) scan of the head. This is a pilot study designed to look at the rates of worsening of brain injury if the low dose blood thinner is started at 24 versus 96 hours post-injury.
The purpose of this study is to improve the ability to diagnose problems after mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI) and to test a drug that may improve the outcome from these injuries. Of the more than 1.5 million people who experience a traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year in the United States, as many as 75% sustain a mild TBI which can cause long-term or permanent impairments/disabilities in a significant proportion of patients. In addition, traumatic brain injury has become a signature injury of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. For people with these injuries, it is difficult to determine whether symptoms are due to the head injury or another condition, such as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. In this project, there are 3 observational studies that involve testing of mental functions and behavior, imaging of the brain with special x-ray procedures, and blood samples to look at glandular function, which may be affected by head injury. A fourth study is a test of a drug, atorvastatin, which may provide protection for injured brain cells and improve outcome. By collecting and analyzing the information from these tests, it will be possible to make the process of diagnosing mild TBI or post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) more precise, and also to see if atorvastatin is a helpful drug for patients with MTBI.
The aim of this study is to assess the safety and feasibility of dexmedetomidine as an adjunct to conventional sedative therapy compared to conventional sedative therapy alone in patients with severe traumatic brain injury.