Blogged Health

When people suffer from a traumatic brain injury or a stroke, often times their eyesight is one of the fist and most severely affected areas. For the most part, doctors believed this damage to be permanent and untreatable, until the introduction of a new form of therapy, called Nova Vision.

I have previously written on the recent studies being performed on patients suffering from traumatic brain injuries and new hope with a commonly used pregnancy hormone, progesterone, as a source of treatment for their injury. A story out yesterday through ABC News provides further proof that this drug could be highly beneficial when treating sufferers of TBIs.

I found an article this past weekend on a solider detailing his struggles to return to civilian life after his tour in Iraq, and the diseases that remain with him. After returning home from war last year, AJ Jefferson is now faced with nightmares, post-traumatic stress disorder, and a traumatic brain injury, which leaves him with many sleepless nights and memory loss.

Due to the recent attention focused on the rise of head injuries in professional sports, and the speculation that the suicide of former NFL player Andre Waters was due in part to an untreated traumatic brain injury, the National Football League has increased standards for players both on and off the field.

Erectile Dysfunction Drug Shows Promise in Animal Study. New research suggests the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra may have unexpected benefits for weary travelers. The little blue pill known for making time in the bed more enjoyable may also help weary jet travelers roll out of it in the morning.

New research shows Viagra may be the solution for travelers who suddenly find themselves needing to rise hours earlier as they cross time zones, at least if those travelers are hamsters.

A study at the Universidad Nacional de Quilmes in Buenos Aires showed that male hamsters who received an injection of sildenafil along with a 15-minute stimulation of light were able to adjust their internal clocks by six hours in roughly half the time that hamsters who did not receive the treatment took.

Sildenafil is the active ingredient in the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra.

Because humans and mammals have similar daily cycles, “there’s no reason not to believe it should work in humans,” said Diego Golombek, the lead investigator on the study.

At the same time, because the test was only done in animals, Golombek urged restraint for people thinking of trying it out.

“This is a study in laboratory animals, and clinical trials should be undertaken before deciding whether Viagra is a useful and safe treatment for those situations,” he said.

Rise and Shine

Sildenafil works by sustaining a molecule that increases blood flow. Because that signaling molecule is sensitive to light, Golombek said, increasing its quantity makes the system more responsive to a change in patterns of light and dark.

At the same time, the researchers found that sildenafil citrate was useful only for simulations of eastward travel. They found it ineffective when lengthening days to simulate travel westward.

While other treatments exist for jet lag, Golombek said that his research presents a novel approach to the problem — using what is “generally a safe drug.”

Viagra, he said, has been heavily studied for safety and effectiveness, so setting up a clinical trial “should be quite straightforward.”

Source: ABC News