War weapon becomes life saver in TBI research

Other symptoms of TBI include headaches, difficulty remembering or concentrating, fatigue, mood changes, sadness or anger and dizziness. Many of these are also symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But now, researchers say that some of those PTSD cases could be TBI.

TBI studied in lab equipped with cannon

By Jeff Seidel - Detroit Free Press
Posted : Wednesday Jan 2, 2008 11:34:45 EST

DETROIT — The doors are locked.

“Testing!” shouts Dr. Pamela VandeVord, an assistant professor at Wayne State University. She stands back, holding her hands over her ears, bracing for another explosion.

Brain research sounds like the height of academic aloofness, filled with arrogant intellectuals wearing white lab coats in a pristine environment, pondering the meaning of life while listening to Beethoven.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

At Wayne State University, in the biomedical engineering department, brain research is done by researchers wearing blue jeans and T-shirts, working in an old laboratory that looks like an auto shop. It’s more rock ‘n’ roll than classical music.

The research is loud, powerful and exciting — and the topic is relevant: Wayne State has been chosen to receive a $778,000 grant to figure out why so many troops are coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan with brain injuries caused by roadside bombs.

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