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Biden spox John Kirby on Sunday morning callously brushed off news of US troops “undergoing evaluation” for traumatic brain injuries after Iran-backed terrorists launched a missile attack in Iraq. A number of US troops were injured after Iran-backed terrorists launched missiles at al-Assad Airbase in Western Iraq. “At approximately 6:30 p.m. (Baghdad time) time Jan. 20, multiple ballistic missiles and rockets were launched by Iranian-backed militants in Western Iraq targeting al-Assad Airbase. Most of the missiles were intercepted by the base’s air defense systems while others impacted on the base. Damage assessments are ongoing. A number of U.S. personnel are...

On May 31, 2002, 18-year-old Brenden Flynn was involved in an auto accident and suffered a traumatic brain injury. He was med-flighted to a hospital in Syracuse, New York. Shortly thereafter, he was transferred to Park Ridge Hospital near Rochester, where doctors notified his mother, MaryJo Flynn, that Brenden had a zero chance of recovery or having any meaningful “quality of life.” They suggested ending his life. If Brenden were to survive, his doctors said, he would be in a nursing home for the rest of his life. Brenden’s mother, not wanting to make the decision to end her son’s...

Two University of Pennsylvania researchers who examined diplomatic personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Havana confirm they suffered brain injuries, but said the cases weren’t accompanied by head trauma as would have been expected. There are still no indications of what may have caused the diplomats’ mysterious symptoms. The report, published Wednesday in The Journal of American Medical Association, said the unique circumstances of the patients “raise concern about a new mechanism for possible acquired brain injury from an exposure of unknown origin.” In an editorial, JAMA said an explanation “remains elusive” and “many potential causes for the symptoms.... remain...

Joe Namath, one of the most charismatic players in NFL history and one of the game's greatest quarterbacks, said today that if he'd known then what he knows now about concussions, he would never have played football. Namath, who has recently undergone treatment for brain injuries, was asked in an interview with Tiffany Kenney of ABC's West Palm Beach, Florida, affiliate WPBF-TV whether would still play the game, given all he has learned about the effects of concussions. "No," he said. "I hate to say that because if I had a child who wanted to play I'd let them play...

The flip of a single molecular switch helps create the mature neuronal connections that allow the brain to bridge the gap between adolescent impressionability and adult stability. Now Yale School of Medicine researchers have reversed the process, recreating a youthful brain that facilitated both learning and healing in the adult mouse. Scientists have long known that the young and old brains are very different. Adolescent brains are more malleable or plastic, which allows them to learn languages more quickly than adults and speeds recovery from brain injuries. The comparative rigidity of the adult brain results in part from the function...

  NEWS ALERT! Brain-Injured Wife Goes Without Food or Water for Seven Weeks September 17, 2010 (Statement from Terri's Life & Hope Network) - It has been 49 days since Trisha Duguay has gone without any food or water after her feeding tube was removed. Her husband made this decision shortly after Trisha had unsuccessful surgery for a brain tumor that was discovered just after the couple was married.The family has started a Facebook page to lend support to Trisha and her family titled, "From Bride to Angel." So far, over 4,000 people have supported the family.While what is...

John Huff/Staff photographer Rochester residents Ellen Edgerly, left, and her daughter Sara. ROCHESTER — A few years back, hundreds of bikers gathered in Representatives Hall in Concord to protest a proposed helmet law. Ellen Edgerly, 51, an advocate with the state's Brain Injury Association, was sitting in the middle of the room, a lone voice in a sea of leather and wild beards, when a lawmaker asked if anyone supported the change. "She stood up, passed all of these tough guys, and testified about brain injury and what it means," says Steven Wade, the association's executive director. "It took...

WASHINGTON -- Mr. Conyers intends to focus this hearing specifically on brain injuries -- and on their ramifications in college and high school football as well.

Memories help construct lives and life experiences—without them, living life would be nearly impossible. Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases are debilitating illnesses capable of ruining victims’ lives and inflicting pain and sadness on their families. Recent findings at UC Irvine show that the use of stem cells can reverse memory loss after brain injuries and diseases, such as Alzheimer’s. “This study can very well benefit people with diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, as well as physical brain injuries and neuron loss, if it becomes transferable to humans,” said Debbie Morisette, a stereologist working on the study. “But as of right...

Recently, a group of surgeons restored the consciousness of a man who had been in a “minimally conscious state” for six years, unable to feed himself or communicate. The experiment, led by Dr. Ali Rezai, director of the Center for Neurological Restoration at the Cleveland Clinic, involved implanting two electrodes into the brain of a trauma victim. According to an article in the National Catholic Register regarding these findings, Dr. Joseph Giacino, co-leader of the study and associate director of the New Jersey Neuroscience Institute, stated that “the breakthrough raises questions about Schiavo,” adding that “his patient’s circumstances were different...

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A man with severe brain injuries who spent six years in a near-vegetative state can now chew his food, watch a movie and talk with family thanks to a brain pacemaker that may change the way such patients are treated, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday. The 38-year-old man is the first person in a minimally conscious state to be treated with deep-brain stimulation, a treatment that uses a pacemaker and two electrodes to send impulses into a part of the brain regulating consciousness.

The question Sarah Scantlin asked her therapists came slowly and surely. "What ... do ... you ... want ... me ... to ... do ... now?" With her torso balanced between occupational therapist Kalwant Singh's arms and hands, and facing physical therapist Robin Kenyon, Scantlin had completed a set of 10 lower leg lifts, one leg at a time. On request, she'd twisted her neck from side to side and pulled her torso up into a sitting position. Thursday, Jan. 12, was "OK" day for Sarah. It was exactly one year ago that she uttered an "OK, OK" in response...

(CNSNews.com) - Personal injury lawyers are attempting to create a "cottage industry" by linking brain injuries to thrill rides at amusement parks, said the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA). ATRA cited statistics by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission that showed more people were injured in 2000 using trampolines, golf equipment and bicycles than were injured on or in amusement rides of all types. Industry data, according to ATRA, showed that around 99 percent of those who board amusement rides and attractions enjoy their experience without any incident whatsoever. "Following the same attack plan they've used with unwarranted lawsuits involving...