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NOVA scienceNOW: Brain Trauma
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Program Overview
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Scientists discuss concussions—injuries to the brain caused by
a blow to the head—and new technologies being developed to
diagnose traumatic brain injuries.
This NOVA scienceNOW segment:
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reports that almost four million high school and college
athletes suffer concussions each year. Twenty percent of
sports-related head injuries result in traumatic brain injury,
and 90 percent of these traumatic brain injuries are from
concussions.
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explains that the brain's grey matter is organized into regions
that control specific functions such as speech, movement, and
coordination. Even after a concussion, Magnetic Resonance
Imaging (MRI) scans of brain grey matter typically appear
normal.
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states that concussions occur in the brain's white matter, which
is made of networks of bundled nerve cells that regulate actions
and thoughts. White matter also carries water throughout the
brain. Tiny tears caused by concussions may disrupt the white
matter's ability to contain the water, possibly interfering with
communication and impairing brain function.
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points out that white matter doesn't appear in standard brain
scans. A newly developed technology, called Diffuse Tensor
Imaging (DTI), reveals white matter changes by examining water
flow through white matter.
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explains that disrupting connections between different brain
areas affects attention and memory. To test attention changes, a
device was developed that tracks how well eyes follow a moving
target. Under normal circumstances, people follow a target
smoothly with their eyes. But for someone with a concussion,
there are interruptions in the tracking, revealing changes in
attention.
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reveals that if a youth has a head injury during a game, there
is no objective way to diagnose it. Researchers are developing a
portable version of the eye-tracking system. It diagnoses a
possible concussion by recording how well someone's eyes can
track a dot moving in a circle.
Taping Rights: Can be used up to one year after the program
is recorded off the air.
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