It’s game time for Abbott Laboratories’ 15-minute concussion test now that FDA clearance is in hand. The I-Stat traumatic brain injury cartridge uses whole blood, allowing bedside assessment of patients without lab processing.
In repeated concussions, removing damaged mitochondria could prevent the neurodegeneration that occurs when pathology progresses in some patients. The key would be in the role of the p17 protein in restoring mitophagy, according to scientists from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). “Brain injury is an extrinsic disease. It is not idiopathic. When the primary injury occurs, the secure mechanism only relies on an endogenous protection of the brain. If you have a good neuroprotective mechanism, then after the primary injury, basically you don’t see any symptomatic effect,” Onder Albayram told BioWorld.
Branelie Health Inc. seeks patent protection for a computer-implemented method and system for predicting appropriateness of treatment options for the management of traumatic brain injuries, particularly concussions.
Neuraxis Inc. has initiated a clinical study to evaluate the efficacy of its IB-Stim neuromodulation system in treating children with post-concussion syndrome (PCS). The aim is to see whether IB-Stim can ease the constellation of symptoms that occur after mild traumatic brain injury such as headaches, dizziness and problems with concentration and memory.
For many sports injuries, return-to-play decisions are pretty straightforward: pain and swelling have dissipated, or an X-ray confirms that a bone has healed. For concussion, it’s not so clear. Though symptoms may resolve after a few days, the brain could still be vulnerable. Now, Cupertino, Calif.-based based startup Mindrhythm Inc. has developed a headset to assess concussion recovery using biometric measures and help doctors safely return concussed individuals to play.
South African Rugby and the U.S. National Football League (NFL) are actively studying ways to more quickly and reliably diagnose concussions and find more effective treatment for their sequelae. Researchers at the University of Birmingham and Marker Diagnostics Ltd. have identified a biomarker that signals a concussion has occurred, while a team at Electrocore Inc. is working with the NFL to address post-concussion headaches.
Regenlife SAS raised $3.3 million in series A funding in order to finalize the development of its photomodulation technology to treat neurodegenerative diseases.
Qrons Inc. has established a collaboration with scientists at a public research university in Israel, by which Tellurium-based compounds in combination with Qrons' QS-200 product candidate and other configurations will be explored as treatment for diffused axonal injuries (concussions), which accounts for approximately 89% of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).
Aural Analytics Inc. and Hhitt Inc., dba Hitcheck, teamed up to offer a cognitive assessment application that could quickly answer the question, “Should he play?” after a hit to the head during a game. Considering the controversy over Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s loss of consciousness following his second head injury in two games last month, the cognitive assessment tool, which includes clinical-grade speech analytics, comes none too soon.
Syncthink Inc. is preparing to launch its neurological impairment and disease diagnostic in Europe, after securing CE marking for the ocular biomarker device. The company is raising a new round of funding to support commercialization of the Eye-Sync system and has two projects exemplifying applications of the device running with academic collaborators in the U.K.