image: (From left) Researchers Pamela VandeVord and Gunnar Brolinson at the Virginia Tech Center for Injury Biomechanics Blast Facility, home of their research project.
Credit: Photo courtesy of the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Could applying a little pressure to the head be a game changer for the treatment of traumatic brain injury?
Virginia Tech’s Pamela VandeVord and Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine’s Gunnar Brolinson recently received a $2.17 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate how a technique called cranial osteopathic manual manipulation might do just that.
“Cranial osteopathic manipulation medicine has the potential to have a positive impact on traumatic brain injury patients for which headaches are the most common symptom,” said VandeVord, the N. Waldo Harrison Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics. “Importantly, this is a noninvasive and non-pharmacological approach, which is a priority for integrative health practices.”
While similar osteopathic manipulative medicine commonly is used to improve other medical conditions and injuries, there is limited data on the brain’s response to this approach and few non-pharmacological treatments available, the researchers said. Their proposed work will focus on understanding how this technique aids in the clearing of inflammatory molecules from the injured brain by enhancing brain fluid motion and balancing of the autonomic nervous system.
Experts in brain imaging and fluid flow analysis are part of the research team. The collaboration includes:
- Jennifer Munson, director of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC’s Cancer Research Center, professor of biomedical engineering and primary investigator of the Munson Lab
- Maosen Wang, a research assistant professor at Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
“The NIH award will help us foster research collaborations between engineers and osteopathic clinicians to develop innovative strategies that promote recovery,” VandeVord said.
The five-year grant, received through the NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, will fund research focused on a holistic approach and integrate by complementary and conventional care. The primary goal is to develop a framework for which the manipulation can be used by clinicians to alleviate neurological symptoms after brain injury.
“Traumatic brain injury is a huge problem, not just in this country, but worldwide,” said Brolinson, vice president for research at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. “And there is no real treatment for it. There is not medication for concussion, just rest and gradual resumption of activity. A novel, noninvasive, gentle osteopathic manipulative medicine technique is potentially revolutionary.”
Brolinson has a history of researching how cranial osteopathic manual manipulation might be used as a treatment for diseases and conditions that affect the human brain. And VandeVord has previously received funding to study the response of brain cells after trauma as well as the connection between brain trauma and epilepsy.
Together, they applied for and received intramural seed funding from the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine and the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science to develop the preliminary data they would need to be successful in gaining additional funding from other organizations, like the NIH.
Amy Ostroth, assistant vice president for communications at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, contributed to this story