Here’s a vexing question raised by a study released this week: Did Lou Gehrig really have Lou Gehrig’s Disease? The research essentially links brain injuries — concussions and brain trauma — to a disease than can be mistaken for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s…
Researchers Probe How Separation From Technology, And Cellphones, Impacts The Mind
Can a few days in the wild, going back to nature, reverse the impact that technology has on how we think, and our behavior? That’s what several academics, led by psychology professor David Strayer of the University of Utah, were trying to discover…
Pentagon Says Military Health Care Won’t Be Spared In Budget Cuts
The Pentagon’s plans to cut billions of dollars from its budget likely means that military health care costs won’t be spared, but will also come under the knife. http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/pentagons-real-budget-battle-cutting-military-health-care/19587704 Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Monday that he was making major cuts in…
Army Report Blames Skyrocketing Soldier Suicides On Drug And Alcohol Abuse, Lax Oversight
In the case of the U.S. military, tragically the enemy is often ourselves, according to an Army report released Thursday. http://www.army.mil/-news/2010/07/28/42934-army-health-promotion-risk-reduction-and-suicide-prevention-report/index.html The startling report found that increased drug and alcohol abuse among soldiers is contributing to a skyrocketing suicide rate…
Columbia University Stops Brain Research Over Tainted Injections
It’s a pretty shocking situation. Respected Columbia University shut down research at its brain-imaging center after federal investigators discovered that the nationally renowned facility had given patients drugs with dangerous impurities. The New York Times did a Page One story Saturday on the Food…
Toxic Sand Suspected Of Damaging Brains Of Our Troops In Afghanistan
Our soldiers in Afghanistan may be facing brain damage from not only bombs and bullets, but from toxic sand, according to a study by the Navy. http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/06/25/toxic-sand-another-enemy-in-afghanistan/?icid=main|main|dl1|link3|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.politicsdaily.com%2F2010%2F06%2F25%2Ftoxic-sand-another-enemy-in-afghanistan%2F The dust that’s blown around during sandstorms contains manganese and other materials that…
Chris Henry and TBI: Would Dr. House have Diagnosed Brain Injury in Time?
Brain injury is a condition that involves microscopic damage to brain tissue that can only be seen in life through the lens of the patterns of the injured person’s life. Chris Henry, the former NFL wide receiver whose autopsy results…
NFL Officials Discuss Ways To Get Players To Admit To Having Concussions
Pro football players have been their own worse enemy regarding concussions, since their macho culture is to downplay head injuries, in part because they want to stay off the bench and keep their gigs. But at a conference Wednesday, the new co-chairmen of…
Medical Experts And NFL Officials Gather For Conference On Brain Injury
Representatives of all 32 National Football League teams gathered in Washington today, Wednesday, to attend a conference on brain injury and hear its recommendations. The teams’ medical officials were in town for a medical forum on the diagnosis and treatment of brain injuries that was conducted by John Hopkins…
New NFL Concussion Leaders Take Big Steps To Distance Selves From Predecessors
It looks like the new co-chairmen of the National Football League’s committee on concussions have taken to heart the criticism levied against them last week by a Congressman. They’ve come out roaring about the league’s past research regarding concussions, got their predecessor dropped…