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The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on traumatic brain injuries in Tyrol: experiences from a state under lockdown.

ABSTRACT: PURPOSE:In February 2020, the federal state of Tyrol in Austria has become one of the epicenters of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tyrol is known for numerous skiing areas. Thus, winter sport resorts became a starting point for COVID-19 infections spreading towards the rest of the state, Austria and other countries, leading to a mandatory quarantine for almost a million people, who were placed under a curfew and restrictions in daily life. Additionally, all ski resorts and hotels were closed. We aimed to analyze the influence of the COVID-19 quarantine on traumatic brain injury (TBI) cases in Tyrol. METHODS:We retrospectively compared demographical and injury characteristics from all TBI patients within the 2020 strict quarantine period with the respective time periods from 2016 to 2019. As our department is the only neurosurgical unit in Tyrol, all patients with moderate or severe TBI are transferred to our hospital. RESULTS:During 3 weeks of the full quarantine period, the weekly TBI cases load decreased significantly in comparison to the same time periods in the years 2016-2019. Furthermore, concomitant skull fractures decreased significantly (p?

SUBMITTER: Pinggera D

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7374069 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on traumatic brain injuries in Tyrol: experiences from a state under lockdown.

Pinggera Daniel D Klein Barbara B Thomé Claudius C Grassner Lukas L

European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society 20200722 3

<h4>Purpose</h4>In February 2020, the federal state of Tyrol in Austria has become one of the epicenters of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tyrol is known for numerous skiing areas. Thus, winter sport resorts became a starting point for COVID-19 infections spreading towards the rest of the state, Austria and other countries, leading to a mandatory quarantine for almost a million people, who were placed under a curfew and restrictions in daily life. Additionally, all ski resorts and hotels were closed. We ...[more]

PMID: 32699916

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Project description:Severe impacts to the head commonly lead to localized brain damage. Such impacts may also give rise to temporary pressure changes that produce secondary injuries in brain volumes distal to the impact site. Monitoring pressure changes in a clinical setting is difficult; detailed studies into the effect of pressure changes in the brain call for the development and use of animal models. The aim of this study is to characterize the pressure distribution in an animal model of penetrating traumatic brain injuries (pTBI). This data may be used to validate mathematical models of the animal model and to facilitate correlation studies between pressure changes and pathology. Pressure changes were measured in rat brains while subjected to pTBI for a variety of different probe velocities and shapes; pointy, blunt, and flat. Experiments on ballistic gel samples were carried out to study the formation of any temporary cavities. In addition, pressure recordings from the gel experiments were compared to values recorded in the animal experiments. The pTBI generated short lasting pressure changes in the brain tissue; the pressure in the contralateral ventricle (CLV) increased to 8 bar followed by a drop to 0.4 bar when applying flat probes. The pressure changes in the periphery of the probe, in the Cisterna Magna, and the spinal canal, were significantly less than those recorded in the CLV or the vicinity of the skull base. High-speed videos of the gel samples revealed the formation of spherically shaped cavities when flat and spherical probes were applied. Pressure changes in the gel were similar to those recorded in the animals, although amplitudes were lower in the gel samples. We concluded cavity expansion rate rather than cavity size correlated with pressure changes in the gel or brain secondary to probe impact. The new data can serve as validation data for finite element models of the trauma model and the animal and to correlate physical measurements with secondary injuries.

Project description:Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of death and disability for children and adolescents in the U.S. and other developed and developing countries. Injury to the immature brain varies greatly from that of the mature, adult brain due to numerous developmental, pre-injury, and injury-related factors that work together to influence the trajectory of recovery during the course of typical brain development. Substantial damage to brain structure often underlies subsequent functional limitations that persist for years following pediatric TBI. Advances in neuroimaging have established an important role in the acute management of pediatric TBI, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques have a particular relevance for the sequential assessment of long-term consequences from injuries sustained to the developing brain. The present paper will discuss the various factors that influence recovery and review the findings from the present neuroimaging literature to assess altered development and long-term outcome following pediatric TBI. Four MR-based neuroimaging modalities have been used to examine recovery from pediatric TBI longitudinally: (1) T1-weighted structural MRI is sensitive to morphological changes in gray matter volume and cortical thickness, (2) diffusion-weighted MRI is sensitive to changes in the microstructural integrity of white matter, (3) MR spectroscopy provides a sensitive assessment of metabolic and neurochemical alterations in the brain, and (4) functional MRI provides insight into the functional changes that occur as a result of structural damage and typical developmental processes. As reviewed in this paper, 13 cohorts have contributed to only 20 studies published to date using neuroimaging to examine longitudinal changes after TBI in pediatric patients. The results of these studies demonstrate considerable heterogeneity in post-injury outcome; however, the existing literature consistently shows that alterations in brain structure, function, and metabolism can persist for an extended period of time post-injury. With larger sample sizes and multi-site cooperation, future studies will be able to further examine potential moderators of outcome, such as the developmental, pre-injury, and injury-related factors discussed in the present review.

Project description:The high prevalence of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) among adolescents has brought much focus to this area in recent years. Sports injuries have been identified as a main mechanism. Although energy drinks, including those mixed with alcohol, are often used by young athletes and other adolescents they have not been examined in relation to TBI.We report on the prevalence of adolescent TBI and its associations with energy drinks, alcohol and energy drink mixed in with alcohol consumption.Data were derived from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health's 2013 Ontario Student Drug Use and Health Survey (OSDUHS). This population-based cross-sectional school survey included 10,272 7th to 12th graders (ages 11-20) who completed anonymous self-administered questionnaires in classrooms.Mild to severe TBI were defined as those resulting in a loss of consciousness for at least five minutes, or being hospitalized for at least one night. Mechanism of TBI, prevalence estimates of TBI, and odds of energy drink consumption, alcohol use, and consumption of energy drinks mixed with alcohol are assessed.Among all students, 22.4% (95% CI: 20.7, 24.1) reported a history of TBI. Sports injuries remain the main mechanism of a recent (past year) TBI (45.5%, 95% CI: 41.0, 50.1). Multinomial logistic regression showed that relative to adolescents who never sustained a TBI, the odds of sustaining a recent TBI were greater for those consuming alcohol, energy drinks, and energy drinks mixed in with alcohol than abstainers. Odds ratios were higher for these behaviors among students who sustained a recent TBI than those who sustained a former TBI (lifetime but not past 12 months). Relative to recent TBI due to other causes of injury, adolescents who sustained a recent TBI while playing sports had higher odds of recent energy drinks consumption than abstainers.TBI remains a disabling and common condition among adolescents and the consumption of alcohol, energy drinks, and alcohol mixed with energy drinks further increase the odds of TBI among adolescents. These associations warrant further investigation.

Dataset Information

The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on traumatic brain injuries in Tyrol: experiences from a state under lockdown.

Publications

The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on traumatic brain injuries in Tyrol: experiences from a state under lockdown.

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