Jeffrey Gross

Can Regenerative Medicine Help Those with Traumatic Brain Injury?

The lingering effects of post-concussive syndrome, more technically called Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can be devastating for a sufferer and his or her family. Brain-related disabilities can occur when the head is struck or shaken (or both). This leads to structural damage of the soft brain tissues and their connections. As a result, a person may suffer related functional changes, and neurological deficits. The severity of TBI can range from mild, moderate, to severe, with symptoms ranging from headaches, dizziness, and confusion to seizures, paralysis, and coma. The terminology should be understood to be comparative, as even a “mild” traumatic brain injury can be associated with disabling symptoms (whereas a severe TBI sufferer may be a vegetable). Although acute TBI sufferers tend to show improvement in the early months, there has been no cure for chronic symptoms of TBI. Presently, the available treatments focus on supportive care and symptom management, and on compensation for what one can no longer do (stop working, get help with the checkbook, etc).