A new handheld medical tool is being developed to catch concussions and other personal injury related to the head. The new tool could prove especially useful for athletes or for people who have suffered injuries in a car accident. The technology of the new portable device is also focused on diagnosing mild traumatic brain injury which is among the most difficult injuries to diagnose.
Though mild traumatic brain injury may not sound serious, mild brain injuries create a greater likelihood of re-injury and can lead to more severe injury. The ability to diagnose a concussion or other brain injuries soon after they occur can prevent the risk of more injury. Concussion treatment is also more effective if it is provided within the first few hours of injury. A person that suffers multiple concussions can lose memory and someone who has experienced years of hard hits to the head may suffer from depression, dementia or Parkinson's disease.
The new diagnostic tool is being developed at the Greensboro Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering in North Carolina. The device is being developed to use saliva, urine or blood to determine whether someone has experienced a concussion. The brain produces a certain compound when it is injured and the medical tool will measure the presence of the compound in a patient's body.
Today, doctors try to diagnose concussions through physical symptoms or through the use of CAT scans and MRIs. Neither strategy is very effective to diagnose mild brain injury. The new tool will hopefully bring a more accurate way to diagnose mild concussions and will have the added benefit of mobility.
Source: ESPN, "Brain Injury Detection on the Hill?" Cameron Walker, 1/3/11