There is a very little research on treating Post Concussion Syndrome. I’m launching a crowdfunding campaign for my own preliminary study. It’s about time.
UPDATE November 23, 2016: My crowdfunding platform was going to be Experiment.com. But because they felt that I wasn’t objective enough with the methodology they waffled on making a decision until yesterday when I got back from Jamaica. I’d made every change they asked me to make, to no avail. So I just moved on. And with their encouragement I created a campaign in GoFundMe.
https://www.gofundme.com/online-brain-training-for-pcs
The campaign will run from today thru December 23, 2016.
This is the giving season. Please donate when the time comes, because this WILL change lives! And perhaps even SAVE lives….
I received the idea of a research project way back in February this year when a friend who’s doing research in stem cells suggested that I do research on my obsession too. But for both of us, funding what we do is difficult because we’re mavericks and operate outside of the usual research/pharmaceutical spheres. So after turning the idea in my mind for some weeks, I put it aside.
Then in September, I was lying in bed listening to the morning radio announcer who had an idea about an invention. He talked about crowdfunding. Immediately I wondered if there were any crowdfunding sites for medical research. A quick Google search revealed only a few (and none were Canadian). But two weeks ago I made a FIRM DECISION and suddenly, the idea took on a life of its own. I’d also done a course called the Power of Asking by Bardi Toto Drake (no compensation for mentioning her!)
I began to ask people, the ones that I identified, for help, for endorsements, etc. Not everyone said, “Yes!” But the right ones in my mind did!
So getting back to what’s already been done, the research that you hear most about is about diagnosis and understanding it, which in my mind isn’t that hard to figure out. They also do a lot of statistical studies about who will get concussions and which sports are more dangerous. In my opinion, these studies only make people afraid and are therefore, useless. Because of the lack of treatment from conventional medicine, there is a lot of panic over brain injuries which doesn’t exist for other types of injury. Not that I agree 100% with those either!
In PubMed alone 4656 studies were found about concussion. There are far fewer studies about actual treatment, as researchers who have done exhaustive literature studies have found (King, 2003; Ponsford, 2005; Chong, 2008). These same papers ask for more research into viable treatments or have found that the evidence base for management of mild traumatic brain injury is very limited. The words management, guidelines, intervention, rehabilitation and remediation are all used interchangeably with the word treatment, which is often misleading when doing a literature search.
Quite frankly “management” is a dirty word. We don’t want to manage, we want to obliterate the situation that people become accustomed to! This requires PERSONAL GROWTH in order to heal. Popping pills and surgery are passive activities that have many side effects and no guaranteed results.
By changing your outlook on yourself, your life from the inside, that’s where true healing ever happens.
There is a realization by a minority that both biological and psychological factors must be considered together in post-concussion syndrome (King, 2003.) That’s definitely what I deal with.
There are some research projects that question the usual treatment of complete rest after concussion (De Kurijk, 2002) and others have noted that it might make PCS symptoms worse (Broshek, 2014; Thomas et al, 2015.) What research there is about treatment consists of scattered treatment modalities such as using anti-depressants and antianxiety drugs (Scheutzow, 1999) and brain surgery (Ducic, 2015). Most psychological intervention includes Cognitive Behavioural Training (Sandford, 2010; Conder, 2014; Potter, 2011; Ogden, 2014), mindfulness (Azulay, 2013) and telephone support for military personnel (Bell, 2016).
To date, a search in the literature indicates no research projects being done with brain training that apply modern neuroscience, neuroplasticity and Classical Chinese psychology/medicine. That’s where my research project is unique. It’s going to test the APPLICATION of these great bodies of work. I’ve already done it time and time again inside my clinical practice. It’s time to help a LOT more people who are desperate for help!
My crowdfunding project has officially been launched! Please donate NOW to my crowdfunding project!
https://www.gofundme.com/online-brain-training-for-pcs
References
Al Sayegh A, Sandford D, Carson A J (2010). “Psychological approaches to treatment of post-concussion syndrome: a systematic review” Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry. October 2010 DOI: 10.1136/jnnp.2008.170092
Azulay, J., Smaert, C.M., Mott, T, Cicerone, K.D. (2013). “A pilot study examining the effect of mindfulness-based stress reduction on symptoms of chronic mild traumatic brain injury/postconcussive syndrome” Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation. 2013 Jul- Aug;28(4):323-31. doi: 10.1097/HTR.0b013e318250ebda
Bell K.R., Fann J.R., Brockway J.A., Cole W.R., Bush N.E., Dikmen S., Hart T., Lang A.J., Grant G., Gahm G., Reger M.A., St De Lore J., Machamer J., Ernstrom K., Raman R., Jain S., Stein M.B., Temkin N. (2016). “Telephone Problem Solving for Service
Members with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: A Randomized, Clinical Trial” Journal of Neurotrauma. 2016 Oct 13 DOI: 10.1089/neu.2016.4444
Broshek, D.K., DeMarco, A.P., Freeman, J.R. (2015). “A review of post-concussion syndrome and psychological factors associated with concussion.” Brain Injury. 2015;29(2):228-37. doi: 10.3109/02699052.2014.974674
Chong, Cecilia S. (2008). “Management Strategies For Post-Concussion Syndrome After Mild Head Injury: a Systematic Review.” Hong Kong Journal of Occupational Therapy HKJOT 2008;18(2)
Conder, Robert & Conder, Alanna A. (2014). “Neuropsychological and psychological rehabilitation interventions in refractory sport-related post-concussive syndrome” Brain Injury. Early Online: 1–14 DOI: 10.3109/02699052.2014.965209
De Kruijk, J. R., Leffers, P., Meerhof, S., et al (2002) “Effectiveness of bed rest after mild traumatic brain injury: a randomised trial of no versus six days of bed rest” Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. 73, 167^172.
Ducic I., Sinkin J.C., & Crutchfield, K.E. (2015). “Interdisciplinary treatment of post- concussion and post-traumatic headaches” Micorsurgery. 2015 Nov;35(8):603-7. doi: 10.1002/micr.22503
King, N. S. (2003) “Post-concussion syndrome: clarity amid the controversy?” British Journal of Psychiatry. 183, 276^278.
Ogden, J., Brunger, H., Malia, K., Eldred, C., Terblanche, R., & Mistlin, A. (2013). “Adjusting to persistent post-concussive symptoms following mild traumatic brain injury and subsequent psycho-educational intervention: A qualitative analysis in military personnel” Brain Injury. 2014; 28(1): 71–80. DOI: 10.3109/02699052.2013.857788
Ponsford, J.,Willmott, C., Rothwell, A., et al (2002) “Impact of early intervention on outcome following mild head injury in adults” Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. 73, 330^332.
Potter, S. & Brown, R.G. (2011). “Cognitive behavioural therapy and persistent postconcussional symptoms: Integrating conceptual issues and practical aspects in treatment” Neuropsychological Rehabilitation. 012;22(1):1-25. doi: 10.1080/09602011.2011.630883
Scheutzow M.H., Wiercisiewski D.R. (1999). “Panic disorder in a patient with traumatic brain injury: a case report and discussion” Brain Injury. 1999 Sep;13(9):705-14.
Thomas, Danny G., Apps, J.N., et al. (2015). “Benefits of Strict Rest After Acute Concussion: A Randomized Controlled Trial” Pediatrics. January 2015.
Thanks for reading! Share this post please! Get behind me and support the crowdfunding project by spreading the news AND donating to it. It’s all or nothing. We won’t get the go ahead unless we’re fully funded! November 24, 2016. The World needs YOUR help NOW!
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Dr. Joanny Liu, TCMD “Best Selling Author and founder of Extraordinary Sports Medicine, where we help athletes reverse injury, get back in the game they love and improve their quality of life.” Best selling book at: Heal Your Concussion: How to Quickly and Effectively Get Back in the Game My book is chock full of USEFUL information to get off the PCS bandwagon. Follow the step-by-step instructions in it and you will become stronger and resilient again, leading to brain health and the life you want to live. Do it now!
Join Dr. Joanny on Periscope at 9:30 AM MST/11:30 AM EST most Thursdays.
