Memphis, Tennessee news: UC researchers pioneering research to treat 'brain tsunamis'
University of Cincinnati researchers are enrolling patients in a first-of-its-kind trial that tests a treatment for abnormal brain activity sometimes referred to as a “brain tsunami.”
The phenomenon is officially called a spreading depolarization (SD). UC’s Jed Hartings, PhD, principal investigator of the trial, explained that just like a battery, brain cells have a stored, or polarized, charge that enables them to send electrical signals to each other.
During SD, the brain cells lose their charge, becoming depolarized and unable to send electrical signals to each other.
“We’re finding out it is a likely culprit in more and more diseases than we ever thought imaginable. It’s kind of like the hidden iceberg below the surface,” Hartings, professor and vice chair of research in the Department of Neurosurgery in UC’s College of Medicine, told Memphis, Tennessee television station Action News 5.
There is no current standard of care to treat SD, and in the trial, an electrode strip is placed in patients' brains to monitor activity. Neurocritical care experts like Laura Ngwenya, MD, PhD, can then more closely manage blood pressure, blood sugar and body temperature or administer the drug ketamine to stop SDs.
"This has actually been revolutionary, in terms of how we think about how we treat brain injury patients,” Ngwenya, associate professor and director of neurotrauma in the Department of Neurosurgery in UC’s College of Medicine, told Action News 5.
Watch or read the Action News 5 story.
Featured photo at top of neurons. Photo/Imaginima/iStock.
Latest UC News
- UC Clermont welcomes students from 50 states as programs, pathways increaseThe University of Cincinnati Clermont College now boasts students from all 50 states in the United States and overseas, thanks to a growing slate of online programs and innovative in-person and hybrid offerings.
- GE Aerospace, UC celebrate first class of GE Next EngineersThe Cincinnati Business Courier highlights a collaboration between the GE Foundation and UC's College of Engineering and Applied Science to get more students interested in careers in engineering.
- CCPS faculty foster global cooperative education with Taiwan initiativeAssistant professors Gwen Roemer and Nadia Ibrahim-Taney take significant step towards enhancing global cooperative education and career development opportunities through a strategic initiative in Taiwan.
- Diabetes, heart problems and kidney disease are closely linkedThe University of Cincinnati's Estrelita Dixon was featured in a New York Times article discussing ways to manage heart disease, diabetes and kidney disease, chronic diseases which are often linked.
- Explore CCM Prep's dance, music and theatre arts programs for all agesStudents of all ages and abilities with an interest in the performing arts can explore their creativity in Prep programs at UC's College-Conservatory of Music. CCM Prep offers a wide variety of classes in dance, music and theatre arts — including classes for adults, young children teens and pre-professional students preparing for a future in the performing arts.
- Remembering University of Cincinnati Professor Zane L. MillerThe name Zane L. Miller, PhD, evokes memories of a diligent researcher, passionate professor, collaborative colleague and the individual responsible for establishing the University of Cincinnati as a center of urban historical studies.