The technique developed at OHSU measures the brain’s clearance system through MRI technology.

A new study of veterans shows that good sleep plays an important role in the healing of traumatic brain injuries.

The study, published in the Journal of Neurotrauma, used a new technique involving magnetic resonance imaging developed at Oregon Health & Science University. The researchers used MRI to assess the enlargement of the perivascular spaces that surround blood vessels in the brain. Enlargement of these compartments occurs with aging and is associated with the progression of dementia.

Among the veterans who participated in the study, those who did not get a good night’s sleep had a greater risk of these compartments expanding and more post-traumatic symptoms.

“This has huge implications for the armed forces as well as the community,” said lead author Juan Piantino, MD, MCR, associate professor of pediatrics (neuropsychology) at OHSU School of Medicine and Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. copper. This study shows that sleep can play an important role in removing impurities from the brain after a traumatic brain injury – and if you don’t sleep well, you may not be cleaning your brain effectively.”

Piantino, a physician and scientist with OHSU’s Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute, studies the impact of poor sleep on recovery from traumatic brain injury.

The new study benefited from an MRI analysis method led by study co-authors Daniel Schwartz and Erin Boespflug, Ph.D., under the direction of Lisa Silbert, MD, MCR, professor of neurology at OHSU School of Medicine . This technique measures changes in the perivascular space of the brain, which is part of the brain’s clearance system called the glymphatic system.

“We were able to very precisely measure this structure and count the number, position and diameter of the grooves,” says Piantino.

Co-author Jeffrey Iliff, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and behavioral and neuroscience at the University of Washington and a researcher at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System, led the scientific study of the system. glymphatic system and its role in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. During sleep, this whole brain network removes metabolic proteins that should not accumulate in the brain.

The study used data collected from a group of 56 veterans led by co-authors Elaine Peskind, MD, and Murray Raskind, MD, at the Center for Research, Education, and Clinical Studies in Mental Illness at VA Puget Sound. from 2011 to 2019.

“Imagine your brain is making all these impurities and everything is still working fine,” says Piantino. “Now you are traumatized. The brain makes more waste than it has to get rid of, but the system is blocked.”

Piantino says new research shows that the technique developed by Silbert could be useful for older adults.

“In the long run, we can start to think about using this approach to predict who will be at risk for cognitive problems including dementia,” he said.

The study is the latest in a growing group of researchers highlighting the importance of sleep for brain health.

Improving sleep is an adjustable habit and can be improved through a variety of methods, including better sleep hygiene habits like reducing screen time before bed, says Piantino. . Improving sleep has been a focus of research by other OHSU scientists, including Piantino’s mentor, Miranda Lim, MD, Ph.D., associate professor of neurology, medicine, and behavioral neuroscience at OHSU School of Medicine.

“This study puts sleep at the heart of recovery from traumatic brain injury,” says Piantino.

Research supported by the Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, award K23HL150217-01; U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Commendation Review Committee on Rehabilitation Research and Service Development B77421; and NIH award P30AG008017-18.

Information sources:

Materials provided by Oregon Health & Science University. Written by Erik Robinson.

References:

1. Link between mild traumatic brain injury, poor sleep, and MRI-visible perivascular spaces in Veterans. Journal of Neurotrauma, 2021

Juan Piantino, Daniel L Schwartz, Madison Luther, Craig D Newgard, Lisa Silbert, Murray Raskind, Kathleen Pagulayan, Natalia Kleinhans, Jeffrey Iliff, Elaine Peskind.

DOI: https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/neu.2020.7447

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Source: ScienceDaily

Link: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210312155435.htm

Author: Roxie Duong