BrainAndSpinalCord.Org Blog
The New England Journal of Medicine recently found that an inexpensive drug commonly prescribed to patients with “prolonged disorders of consciousness after traumatic brain injury” does significantly improve recovery speed. It is known as amantadine.
This study included 184 patients four to 16 weeks after a traumatic brain injury who were in a “vegetative or minimally conscious state” and were receiving inpatient rehabilitation. The study took place over a six-week period.
When taken off the medication for the final two weeks, patients taking the real drug showed slowed rates of improvement, indicating its effectiveness. At the end of the study, the recovery level of the two groups remained about...
Read More »The Alabama news outlet, Alabama Live LLC, announced last week that a bill to increase fines for speeding and other moving violations has passed the State Senate, while a House version has also been sponsored. The news source explains that these fine increases would go to fund spinal cord injury research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).
If this bill passes into law, the fine increases would “charge an extra $1 for basic moving violations, $5 for aggravated violations such as reckless driving or following too closely and $10 for DUIs.” According to the news source, this bill is expected to raise as much as $500,000 a year for spinal cord injury research.
The bill itself is...
Read More »Paralyzed Veterans of America will celebrate their 66th anniversary this April with Paralyzed Veterans Awareness Month. The veteran support organization explains that they will be marking their founding by “encouraging all Americans to take a stand and commit to helping veterans as part of their life’s mission.”
Paralyzed Veterans of America was founded by a group of service members who returned from World War II with spinal cord injuries. Although the group notes they returned to a grateful nation, they also faced many challenges in a world that was not yet prepared to accommodate their needs.
However, the organization explains that these initial founders made a conscious decision at that time...
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