New traumatic brain injury drug set for US field trialsRSS Feed

A new treatment for traumatic brain injury is set to be trialled as part of an $8 million (£5 million) grant-funded research programme in the US.

Medical staff seeing brain injury patients at UC Davis Medical Center's trauma centre will administer a new neuroprotective drug, a steroid called allopregnanolone.

Researchers hope to establish whether the new treatment will be effective for those suffering from severe brain injury, such as one that may have occurred in a car crash or sports accident.

Lead researcher for the five-year study professor Michael Rogawski underlined the importance of this round of trials.

He said: "Allopregnanolone has never been tested in humans with brain injuries but it has been shown to be effective in animal models.

"We also will be looking to see if it prevents the development of post-traumatic epilepsy."

The new field trial of the drug comes after a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in December suggested that a diet high in amino acids helped to restore the cognitive abilities of mice with brain injuries.

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