Archive
Brain Injury Diagnosis & Treatment
How are traumatic brain injuries diagnosed, and what treatment is recommended for concussions and other brain injuries?
How Long Will It Take for My Child to Recover from a Concussion?
Children can experience a range of symptoms after concussion. They require individualized treatments and strategies for returning to activities and to school. A physician with training and experience in treating concussions must provide early interventions and follow-up, regardless of how long recovery takes.
Self-Reported Concussion Symptoms are Key to Evaluation & Diagnosis
To properly diagnose a concussion and devise a treatment plan requires a thorough physician evaluation, a symptom checklist or an interview, or both, followed by a comprehensive cognitive and physical examination. Download a pocket guide that helps patients prepare for being evaluated.
Abuse: A Leading Cause of Brain Injury in Children
Child abuse is a top cause of brain injury-related emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and deaths among children of all ages. Diagnosis can be challenging in cases of pediatric abusive head trauma. Prevention strategies at the individual and community level can be effective and there are many available resources.
Opioids Cause Problems After a Brain Injury
Stories of opioid-related disability and death are in the news frequently because of a surge in the use of these substances over the past few decades. For people with a history of brain injury, including concussions, the risks of using opioids are higher than for those without this medical history. Learn about the benefits and dangers of these substances, some of which are not only legal but widely prescribed for acute and chronic pain.
Coma and Other Disorders of Consciousness
What happens to the brain after a severe brain injury that renders a person unconscious or “comatose”? Learn the meaning of other terms that describe patients who have disorders of consciousness: the minimally conscious state, cognitive-motor dissociation, covert consciousness, and unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (vegetative state). Researchers are studying advanced technologies evaluating patients with disorders of consciousness, and there are new U.S. and European guidelines that are helping to standardize care and advance the field of brain injury.
Falls and Brain Injury in Older Adults
Traumatic brain injuries are very common in older adults who fall. They can result in hospitalization, death, or disability especially in this age group and those on certain medications. In this post, an elderly woman has a delayed hematoma from an injury that could have been deadly. Falls can be prevented and Dr. Sandel shares important information about risk factors and tips for prevention.
What is Post-Concussion Syndrome?
I recently talked with journalist Nathaniel Parish Flannery who writes about cycling. He was writing an article about pro cyclist Ian Boswell. Boswell had a crash in 2019 that resulted in long-term concussion symptoms. Flannery found our conversation and my book, Shaken Brain, very helpful, and he tells Boswell’s story in…
Common Misconceptions about Concussion
Test your concussion knowledge by checking out these common misconceptions about concussion causes, diagnosis, treatment, and recovery.
The Prevalence of Brain Injuries in Sports and the Military
In the second part of this series, Dr. Sandel continues with further discussion of concussion management. She then describes blast injuries that occur in the military. Who provides treatment for concussions and what kind of care is best?, What are the risks of a long-term problem after a concussion or…
The “Invisible Injury”: Concussions and other TBI’s
In the first part of this series, Dr. Sandel discusses mild brain injuries, especially sports-related concussions. What happens to the brain during a concussion and what are the symptoms? What is second impact syndrome? And are children more or less vulnerable than adults?
Concussions/Mild TBIs: Early Intervention to Achieve the Best Outcomes
In this Paradigm webinar, Dr. Elizabeth Sandel leads a discussion of concussion management that is based on a systematic, biopsychosocial model. She is joined by a Paradigm colleague, neuropsychologist Dr. Deborah Benson, to explore the evaluation and treatment of the complex issues for people with chronic symptoms.
Shaken Brain with Dr. Elizabeth Sandel on Recovery Now with Kim Justus
Dr. Sandel discusses brain injury medicine, a new subspecialty of medicine, and getting the best care after a concussion or more severe brain injury in the US. Kim Justus discusses her own history in regards to brain injury and her struggles to find care. She also discusses Dr. Sandel’s book, Shaken Brain, as a helpful resource for listeners.
AMA Hub offers Concussion CME
The AMA Ed Hub has posted the CME program produced by Dr. Sandel and Concussion Alliance.
Is There a Connection Between Mild TBI and Mental Health Disorders in Adults and Children?
In a recent study, researchers at Kaiser Permanente found that risks for affective and behavioral disorders were significantly higher in the years post-injury for children and adolescents with a history of mTBI—especially for 10- to 13-year-olds. They emphasize the importance of regular interval screening for affective and behavioral disorders in children and adolescents who sustain a mild TBI. This post includes a slide presentation and Q & A with two of the researchers, Richard Delmonico, PhD, and Brian Theodore, PhD.
Concussion Alliance Co-Founders Interviewed for Slate Article
More and more journalists are writing about concussion, in many cases because they have had a concussion themselves or have friends or relatives who have experienced one. In March, 2024, Isobel Whitcomb interviewed Concussion Alliance co-founders Conor Gormally and Malayka Gormally for an article in Slate. It is concerning that bad medical advice (“just rest”) is still being given to concussion patients as is clear in Whitcomb’s story.
Concussion Care Highlighted in The Atlantic and Bloomberg News
I collaborated recently with Conor Gormally of Concussion Alliance to advocate for individualized and comprehensive concussion care in mainstream news stories with journalists who recounted personal stories of concussion. Here’s what The Atlantic and Bloomberg published.
The 6th International Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport–What’s New?
The Statement summarizes scientific research and provides some updated recommendations for athletes at risk for concussions. But, it’s been mired in controversy regarding the strict criteria governing which research was included. Read Dr. Sandel’s insights into the process and conclusions.
What Is Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy?
Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy (CRT) is an evidence-based approach to addressing multiple cognitive impairments caused by a traumatic brain injury. Restorative CRT strengthens cognitive abilities, and compensatory CRT provides strategies to reduce the impact of deficits.
Patient-Centered Concussion Care
Presenting to the physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) residents at the UC Davis School of Medicine sparked a lively exchange about patient-centered concussion care. Learn more about the challenges and possibilities for transforming concussion care.
Evaluating and Treating Headaches After Brain Injury
Headaches are extremely common after a traumatic brain injury, but there are various treatments that vary depending on the phenotype or cause.
Post-Traumatic Headaches: Not Just One Type or Treatment
Headaches must be evaluated with a comprehensive history and physical examination. There are many options for treatment, but diagnosis has to be the first step.
Check the Neck after a Brain Injury
Whiplash and cervical strain occurs when a person’s head and neck are forced back and forth, injuring soft tissues of the neck. They are common after brain injuries.
Three Alternative Treatment Modalities to Ease Brain Injury Associated Symptoms
Conventional treatments like medications may not help symptoms after a brain injury. Complementary or alternative treatments may help.
Brain Imaging after an Injury
CT and MRI scans are the most common imaging modalities to evaluate people with traumatic brain injury, but advanced imaging methods are more promising for diagnosis and prognosis. However, interpretations of findings can vary.
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