Mapping spreading depolarisations after traumatic brain injury: a pilot clinical study protocol

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Neurology
• Medical Technology

Background:

• Cortical spreading depolarisation (CSD) is a wave of neural and glial depolarization that suppresses brain activity.
• CSDs are increasingly recognized as a factor contributing to secondary brain injury after insults like traumatic brain injury (TBI).
• Limited data exists on CSD generation and propagation in human TBI patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of using a multistrip electrode array to identify CSDs in TBI patients.
• To characterize the spatial and temporal propagation patterns of CSDs following TBI.
• To correlate CSD propagation with structural brain pathology.

Main Methods:

• A prospective observational pilot study involving TBI patients undergoing craniotomy/craniectomy.
• Continuous electrocorticography (ECoG) monitoring using subdural electrodes for seizure and CSD detection.
• Mapping CSD propagation using reconstructed CT scans and electrophysiological cross-correlations.

Main Results:

• This section is to be filled once the study is completed and results are available.

Conclusions:

• This section is to be filled once the study is completed and conclusions are drawn.