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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.
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.
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.
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.
Treatment and Prognosis after a Concussion
Learn about treatments for post-concussion symptoms—including medication, various rehabilitation therapies, neuropsychology, and potentially some complementary therapies—as well as factors related to longer concussion recovery times.
Meet Dr. Sandel at the Book Signing Event on December 9
Join Dr. Sandel in Oakland on Friday, December 9 from 4:30-6:30pm for a “Shaken Brain” book signing event. Presented by Kim Cole Real Estate.
Patient and Provider Perspectives on Improving Care for Post-Concussion Symptoms
This poster, created for the International Brain Injury Conference in New York in Sept 2022, offers various perspectives on how to improve concussion care. Attached are a reformatted poster presentation and related webinar links.
Concussion in Stunt Performers and other Film & Theater Workers
New research by Professor Jeffrey Russell of Ohio University provides evidence that concussion is a serious occupational health risk in stunt performers. They—and likely other film/theater workers—could benefit from concussion management, risk reduction, and education.
Updating the International Sports Guidelines for Concussion
The 6th International Consensus Conference on Concussion in Sport meets in Oct 2022 to face again the task of revising their sports concussion guidelines. The conference comes in the midst of controversies regarding Paul McCrory, the group’s former chair, and just after a long-awaited statement of causation for CTE from the NIH.
Why is “Post-Concussion Syndrome” Controversial?
We do not yet have a clear understanding of what happens in the brain immediately after a concussion and over the days and months that follow, especially for those patients whose symptoms persist. Post-concussion symptom rates vary greatly among research studies, likely because the populations studied are diverse and so are the diagnostic criteria and timing of assessments. The wide variation in symptom rates highlights the fact that there is a lot we still don’t know about concussions.
Top Causes of Concussion in Children and Adolescents
When we think of “youth” and “concussion,” the first thing that likely comes to mind is a teenager engaging in a high-risk activity such as football, soccer, or snowboarding. But not all youth brain injury results from these risky activities. Of the millions of concussions reported by emergency rooms every year, figures put concussions related to sports and recreation at just 30% – so 70% of concussions result from other causes.
Is Concussion a Diagnosis?
Clinicians like me say that concussion requires a clinical diagnosis based on the history of what happened to produce the symptoms. However, because these same symptoms appear in other conditions, and we don’t have reliable biomarkers, diagnosing a concussion can sometimes be a challenge. The lingering effects of a mild brain injury can also continue as a chronic condition, often referred to as post-concussion syndrome or persistent post-concussion symptoms, that still require treatment.
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