US army develops blood test to mild brain injuryRSS Feed

A blood test developed by the US army to detect brain injury could have application beyond diagnosis among soldiers.

This could be particularly useful for detecting brain trauma in young athletes, combat troops and infants with "shaken baby syndrome", according to USA Today.

The blood test identifies unique proteins which spill into the blood stream from damaged brain cells and has been used to successfully diagnose mild brain damage in 34 patients.

Army vice chief of staff Colonel. Dallas Hack, who is overseeing the research, told the newspaper: "This is huge. It's going to change medicine entirely."

Mild brain damage is notoriously difficult to detect because the trauma does not appear on imaging scans and the symptoms, such as headaches and dizziness, can easily be ignored or downplayed by patients.

The Pentagon says about 115,000 soldiers have suffered mild traumatic brain injury, while a RAND corp study reported that around 300,000 troops have suffered concussion, usually due to roadside bombings.

News brought to you by Serious Law specialists in traumatic brain injury

Posted by Timothy Walters

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