Neurotraumatology

What is Neuro-traumatology?

This is a field of medicine that is concerned with the treatment and the study of traumatic injury to the central nervous system. It is still a developing field that tries to explain the extent to which trauma to the spine and brain affect the normal function of a person. For instance, this field of medicine has a particular interest in contact sports such as boxing and football. By understanding the effects of trauma, doctors hope to come up with ways to reduce the adverse effects.

Treatment

There are a number of techniques applied in treating neuro-trauma. Not all of them will involve surgery. However, a good of them will require a patient undergoes some kind of surgery. The treatment usually entails draining blood away from the brain to prevent the formation of huge clots in the brain or the spinal column. Additionally, it will involve preventing pressure build up in the cranium. Too much pressure can cause the brain to shut down. The physician will try to drain some of the fluid from the brain to keep it from getting inflamed. Treatment will also involve ensuring the brain gets proper nutrition. This is done by checking to make sure all the arteries are supplying blood required by the brain. Other types of treatment involve therapy in a warm water pool. It helps to stimulate blood flow in the brain, thus promoting healing of the injured parts.

Diagnosis

When someone suffers a blow on the head, there are either mild or severe symptoms. Mild symptoms will entail a brief loss of conscious followed by some pain. The severe one will entail prolonged loss of consciousness.

In both cases, there might be long-term effects such as regular loss of concentration. In addition, it may lead to severe migraine attacks on a regular basis. Lapses in memory are also another long-term effect.The patient may also feel fatigued most of the time and notice a loss in reasoning capabilities. Most people who are afflicted by trauma will also find that they are unable to concentrate on a single train of thought. People also tend to become emotionally unstable.

Diagnosis will entail the physician taking a short medical history of the patient. He/she will also want to know if the patient has been involved in any recent injuries at work or at home. The next step would be to recommend an imaging of the entire central nervous system. This will involve an MRI scan. It helps to reveal any abnormalities such as clots.

How will patient recover?

In order to make a full recovery, the patient must avoid the activity that caused the problem in the first place. For instance, the doctor may recommend that one quit a contact sport they are currently playing. One can also avoid further trauma. This is done by ensuring that helmet is fit perfectly. For instance, the helmet should not slide up and down when one tries to pull it upwards. In addition, a person should avoid dangerous activities that cause brain traumas. For instance, boxing is a dangerous sport that will almost lead to brain trauma.