MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dennis Kim, MD Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute                                                                                                                 MedicalResearch: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Dr. Kim: More than 1.7 million people in the U.S. alone suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI) every year, often resulting in permanent disabilities or death. Up to half of these patients will experience progression of bleeding inside or around the brain, the occurrence of which is associated with an increased risk of death. A common treatment to prevent progression of “traumatic intracranial hemorrhage” is the transfusion of platelets, which are irregular shaped cells that cause blood to clot, and the administration of desmopressin (DDAVP), a naturally occurring hormone used to treat bleeding and a number of other medical conditions. Researchers at LA BioMed conducted a three-year retrospective study of the records of patients admitted to a Level 1 trauma center with traumatic brain injury between Jan. 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2012. Of the 408 patients who fit the criteria, 126 received platelet transfusions and DDAVP and 282 did not. Overall, 37% of the patients demonstrated progression of traumatic intracranial hemorrhage within four hours of admission. We compared outcomes for patients who received platelet transfusions and DDAVP and patients who did not receive this therapy. Our comparison found no significant differences in mortality or hemorrhage progression between the two groups. We reported our findings in a study that was recently published online ahead of print in the Journal of Neurotrauma. (more…)