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| Samuel J. LeFrak Hall, the home of the Hearing and Speech department at UMD. Source: Nick Pagliarulo. |
The goal in "beginning a major department-wide initiative in the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion" is to develop better ways of identifying children and young adults who have suffered a head or brain injury.
It is also important to "[assess and support] those individuals who do not fully recover within the expected time frame (roughly 20 percent of cases) to return successfully to the classroom [or to work]."
A traumatic brain injury usually occurs when there is a violent blow or jolt to the head. Penetration of objects, like a bullet, can also cause a traumatic brain injury.
A mild traumatic brain injury "may cause temporary dysfunction of brain cells," while "[m]ore serious traumatic brain injuries can result in bruising, torn tissues, bleeding and other physical damage to the brain that can result in long-term complications or death."
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| The leading causes of TBI in the United States. |
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the leading cause of traumatic brain injury in the United States is from falls (28 percent). Struck by/against events, which include head injuries in sports, is the third leading cause of traumatic brain injury at 19 percent.
Kristin Slawson, M.A., CCC-SLP, a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences at the University of Maryland, is a certified brain injury specialist who is particularly interested in the functional impact of traumatic brain injury on language and is involved in work to improve assessment and intervention for mild traumatic brain injury.
Slawson believes traumatic brain injury and sports concussion are an important matter and she is one person that has made a strong push for this area of study in athletics and other departments at the university.
Speech-language pathologists "work to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, social communication, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders in children and adults."
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| "The Basics Everyone Should Know About TBI (Infographic)" Source: http://www.traumaticbraininjury.net/ the-basics-everyone-should-know-about-tbi-infographic/ |
Well, take this for example. When an individual with a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion visits a school's health center, those nurses and doctors are worried about that student's overall health -- their vestibular function, their diet, how much sleep they are getting, etc.
A speech-language pathologist, on the other hand, is concerned about how this particular individual will do in the classroom and make sure that they don't fall behind in their schoolwork.
Speech-language pathologists, and also audiologists, have been involved with traumatic brain injury for years, primarily working with more severe brain injury patients in rehab and hospital settings.
Slawson believes that speech-language pathologists put their clients in the best position to succeed both in school and at work.
"I think speech pathologists, in particular, are best positioned to help individuals who have had concussions or a mild traumatic brain injury," Slawson said, "because speech pathologists are the one's that will focus on the individual's academic or job-related needs."
Slawson adds that when an speech-language pathologist works with somebody that's had a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion, one of the things that is really important to keep things as functional as possible is focusing on what that person wants to work on -- what that person perceives as their difficulties.
The ultimate goal for the speech-language pathologist is to work on the tasks the client has expressed difficult and implement strategies to overcome those struggles, so they can succeed outside the therapy room.
University of Maryland's "New Cole Field House" plans to have research, clinical work space in concussion and traumatic brain injury
The University of Maryland has plans to renovate the university's historic Cole Field House, which used to be the home for Maryland basketball from 1955-2002.
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| UMD's Cole Field House (above) will be renovated beginning this month. Source: http://umdrightnow.umd.edu/sites/umdrightnow.umd.edu/ files/topiary_cole_small_cropped.jpeg |
There is a $155 million renovation plan for the building "that will give the Terps football team an indoor facility and provide support services to the entire school."
According to the University of Maryland, "New Field Cole Field House" will be a state-of-the-art facility that intends to "contain more than 23,000 square feet of dedicated, revenue-generating clinical space and at least 16,000 square feet of research space" in areas of study like concussion and traumatic brain injury.
This groundbreaking research center will partner with the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering, School of Public Health, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, the University of Maryland, Baltimore's School of Medicine, and the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences.
The center hopes to "[advance] the discovery of innovative diagnostics and treatments, [improve] human performance through interdisciplinary research, [and serve] as an orthopedics resource for as many as 60,000 patients in the Washington, D.C., region each year."
This groundbreaking research center will partner with the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering, School of Public Health, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, the University of Maryland, Baltimore's School of Medicine, and the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences.
The center hopes to "[advance] the discovery of innovative diagnostics and treatments, [improve] human performance through interdisciplinary research, [and serve] as an orthopedics resource for as many as 60,000 patients in the Washington, D.C., region each year."
Slawson is excited about the new Cole Field House plans, particularly as it will allow for research and clinical workspaces focusing in concussion and traumatic brain injury.
Slawson hopes that the programs they will have in "New Cole Field House" will be pivotal in getting individuals, (junior high students, high school students, college students, and adults) who have sustained a mild traumatic brain injury, back to school and back to work.
Along with research space in concussion and traumatic brain injury, the center will also have space in muscle-brain physiology and biochemistry, human physiology and performance, exoskeleton-robotic treatments, and medical biomechanics.
The current plan for "New Cole Field House" is to begin construction in December 2015, this month. The project should be completed by June 2018.
University of Maryland working to better spread knowledge in traumatic brain injury research by collaborating with other Big Ten and Ivy League schools
The University of Maryland is part of the Big Ten/CIC (Committee on Institutional Cooperation)-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration, which "is a multi-institutional research effort whose mission is to better understand the causes and effects of sports-related concussion and head injuries."
The aim of the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration is to bring people of many perspectives (i.e., coaches, athletic trainers, scientists, and physicians) to research and investigate traumatic brain injury in sports.
The group joined forces in June 2012 and it consists of all of the Big Ten Conference schools and all of the Ivy League schools.
Dr. Bradley D. Hatfield, chair of Kinesiology at the University of Maryland and faculty advocate of American College of Sports Medicine, is the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration's faculty research liaison for the University of Maryland. He has been involved with the organization from the start.
Hatfield says that it is a great opportunity for the University of Maryland to be working in the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration with other Big Ten schools and Ivy League schools.
"The collection of universities in this group are some of the best in the world," Hatfield said. "We can share data we [Maryland] don't have in a big database with schools like the University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Penn State University, and the prestigious Ivy League schools such as, Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Brown."
The greatest benefit of the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration is the communication between the 22 institutions. All the schools will be able to pool their findings, like images of injured brains, and study them.
Hatfield mentions that the Maryland is behind the curve right now in the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion studies.
"Maryland has no medical school on site, so the new Cole Field House center will help with that," Hatfield said. "Maryland also hasn't hired many people that are experts in concussions."
Hatfield adds that this center will bring patients in a medically safe environment, which Maryland does not provide.
Despite being behind the curve, with the "New Cole Field House" set to begin construction within the month, Hatfield says that the future at Maryland does look promising in the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion.
"It's a sunny forecast, as we are poised to move into the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion," Hatfield said, "but we're not at the level of activity we hope to have quite yet."
Every July, the Big Ten/CIC-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration convenes for its annual conference. Last year, the meeting was in Philadelphia; this year, it's in Chicago.
Along with research space in concussion and traumatic brain injury, the center will also have space in muscle-brain physiology and biochemistry, human physiology and performance, exoskeleton-robotic treatments, and medical biomechanics.
The current plan for "New Cole Field House" is to begin construction in December 2015, this month. The project should be completed by June 2018.
University of Maryland working to better spread knowledge in traumatic brain injury research by collaborating with other Big Ten and Ivy League schools
The University of Maryland is part of the Big Ten/CIC (Committee on Institutional Cooperation)-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration, which "is a multi-institutional research effort whose mission is to better understand the causes and effects of sports-related concussion and head injuries."
The aim of the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration is to bring people of many perspectives (i.e., coaches, athletic trainers, scientists, and physicians) to research and investigate traumatic brain injury in sports.
The group joined forces in June 2012 and it consists of all of the Big Ten Conference schools and all of the Ivy League schools.
Dr. Bradley D. Hatfield, chair of Kinesiology at the University of Maryland and faculty advocate of American College of Sports Medicine, is the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration's faculty research liaison for the University of Maryland. He has been involved with the organization from the start.
Hatfield says that it is a great opportunity for the University of Maryland to be working in the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration with other Big Ten schools and Ivy League schools.
"The collection of universities in this group are some of the best in the world," Hatfield said. "We can share data we [Maryland] don't have in a big database with schools like the University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Penn State University, and the prestigious Ivy League schools such as, Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Brown."
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| Functional MRI of uninjured brain and concussed brain. Source: http://www.medpagetoday.com/Neurology/ HeadTrauma/36078 |
Hatfield mentions that the Maryland is behind the curve right now in the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion studies.
"Maryland has no medical school on site, so the new Cole Field House center will help with that," Hatfield said. "Maryland also hasn't hired many people that are experts in concussions."
Hatfield adds that this center will bring patients in a medically safe environment, which Maryland does not provide.
Despite being behind the curve, with the "New Cole Field House" set to begin construction within the month, Hatfield says that the future at Maryland does look promising in the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion.
"It's a sunny forecast, as we are poised to move into the area of traumatic brain injury and sports concussion," Hatfield said, "but we're not at the level of activity we hope to have quite yet."
Every July, the Big Ten/CIC-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration convenes for its annual conference. Last year, the meeting was in Philadelphia; this year, it's in Chicago.
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