Month: August 2015

Could a Questionnaire Help To Diagnose Autism?

Could a Questionnaire Help To Diagnose Autism?

Doctors mainly diagnose Autism, or ASD, by monitoring development and behavior. But a new questionnaire assessment might make the diagnosis a bit easier. What is ASD? Autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, is a group of developmental disabilities that can cause significant social, communication and behavior 

Your Life Expectancy: Living A Long and Sick Life

Your Life Expectancy: Living A Long and Sick Life

According to a new study, people are living longer but with more illnesses and disabilities than ever before. While our life expectancy has improved due to numerous advances in technology, our healthy life expectancy has not followed suit. People are living for a longer amount 

New Study Finds Link Between ADHD & Brain Injuries

New Study Finds Link Between ADHD & Brain Injuries

A new study published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research has conducted a telephone survey of adult residents in Canada during 2011 and 2012. Researchers “examined the responses of 3,933 adults aged 18 and above participating in the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health’s Monitor – a continuous survey assessing the physical health, mental health hand substance use of adults in Ontario.”

Previous research has indicated a pre-mature connection between ADHD and TBI (traumatic brain injury) which, “is not surprising”, says lead author Dr. Gabriela Illie, from St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, Canada, “because some of the most persistent consequences of TBI include ADHD-like symptoms, such as memory and attention impairment, deficits in executive functions such as planning and organization, processing consonants and vowels and impulsive behavior.”

Brain injuries can occur in a variety of ways and range from traumatic or severe to mild. Whether a brain injury results from medical malpractice, a motor vehicle accident, a fall, a sports injury, a stroke, a drowning incident, an accident at work, or other circumstances, the personal and financial consequences of a brain injury can be overwhelming.

For a lot of people, being unable to work due to an injury can have devastating consequences. This is why it is so important to seek financial support in the aftermath of an accident that could have been prevented. Consequently, understanding the impact that these costs will have is important in getting the appropriate amount of compensation.

Additionally, according to Medical News Today, the researchers found that of those in the study with a history of TBI, 5.9% reported a previous diagnosis of ADHD at some point in their life. Another 6.6% screened positive for ADHD on the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale during the phone interviews.

What is ADHD?

ADHD, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, is a behavioral disorder that is characterized by issues like impulsive behaviors and difficulty focusing or sustaining attention. TBI, in this case, was defined by researchers as, “trauma to the head that resulted in loss of consciousness for at least 5 minutes or overnight hospitalization.”

Though researchers believe more research is needed to understand this development, they hope to “broaden their understanding” and ultimately discover how to treat ADHD brought on by TBI.

Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/

Sulforaphane for The Brain After Injury

According to a study, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, Sulforaphane may help protect and heal the brain after injury. The blood brain barrier is a protective barrier of tightly woven cells and blood vessels at the base of the spine that allows factors the brain requires to enter yet blocks the absorption of many toxins and chemicals. After an accident that causes a brain injury the blood brain barrier (BBB) looses its integrity and therefore the ability to block toxins from entering the brain. The BBB becomes more permeable and this contributes to swelling of the brain (edema). When rats that were either injured in the brain or were uninjured, were given Sulforaphane, factors that repair and maintain the BBB increased in activity that will restore function of the barrier. The study is published in the September 19th, 2007 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.

The Top Seven Myths About Type 2 Diabetes

The Top Seven Myths About Type 2 Diabetes

Diabetes affects 29.1 million people in the United States, which equals 9% of the entire U.S. population. While Type 2 diabetes makes up about 95% of that number, many people still do not fully understand how it works. Here are the top seven myths about 

Bacterial Infections Common for Contact Wearers

Bacterial Infections Common for Contact Wearers

Contacts have become less of a rare commodity and more of a necessity for those with vision problems who do not want to be troubled with wearing glasses every day. But as common as contacts are, so are the bacterial infections they can harbor. Many 

7 Misconceptions about the Brain

7 Misconceptions about the Brain

The brain is commonly referred to as the “command center” of your body, as it serves numerous purposes that are essential to its function. But it can be very difficult to fully understand. Its complexity has helped to create several myths that are commonly believed to be fact.

Here are 7 commonly believed misconceptions about the brain.

  1. Have you ever heard of the common saying, “We only use 10 percent of our brain”? A survey recently performed by the Michael J. Fox Foundation revealed that 65 percent of respondents believed this to be true. Well, Medical Daily reports that that is 100 percent false – “We use all of our brains to complete daily tasks like walking to work and breathing. Motor function, speech and other utilities of the brain require every square inch of the cerebrum, cerebellum, frontal lobes, etc…”
  2. Do you think we use one side of our brain more than another? Well, contrary to popular belief, there is no evidence that some people are more likely to use one side than the other, according to a recent study. Though many self-help books would lead you to believe that you are either “left-brain” or “right-brain” dominant.
  3. We all know of the five senses – sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. But what we do not know is that those are only 5 of the traditional senses we recognize. The brain actually controls much more than that – “thermoception (hot/cold), equilibrioception (balance/body movement) and nociception (pain)” are just to name a few.
  4. Also contrary to popular belief, “alcohol kills brain cells” is a very common misconception. What alcohol does is disturb the job of neurotransmitters, which are responsible for the communication between the brain and the body. This effect is essentially irreversible and can lead to “Wet Brain”, or Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, a neurological condition. But Medical Daily assures us all that our brain cells have not been killed.
  5. The only way to put an actual hole in a human brain is by physical trauma, not by using drugs. While drugs can also effect the brain’s neurotransmitters, it does not create a physical hole in your brain. However, chronic drug use can result in “deterioration of mental functioning over time.”
  6. Just because you have a larger brain than someone else, does not necessarily mean you are smarter. Take insects for example – “Many insects with brains no larger than the head of a pin are actually as intelligent, and in some cases more so, than much larger animals.”
  7. Until very recently even scientists were fooled into thinking that humans have 100 billion brain cells. After a study was published in 2009, scientists (and the rest of us humans) have found that an estimated 86 billion neurons are in the human brain. “Think those 14 billion neurons make for a small difference? Fourteen million neurons are equal to the entire size of a baboon’s brain”, says Medical Daily.

Source: http://www.medicaldaily.com