Electric Pulse Can Improve Memory in People With Moderate, Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

An electric pulse can help boost memory for some individuals suffering from severe to moderate traumatic brain injury. Here's what the experts said about this approach.

Electric Pulse to Boost Memory for Patients Suffering From Traumatic Brain Injury

NPR's Jon Hamilton reported the new approach of delivering tiny pulses of electricity to improve short-term memory among those with traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). In an interview with Juana Summers and other experts, they discussed the technique.

Hamilton noted that most traumatic brain injuries are concussions, a mild form of TBI. A fall or head injury symptoms often persist for a few days or weeks. There are much fewer severe TBIs. However, according to Dr. Ramon Diaz-Arrastia, they can permanently harm a person's short-term memory and cognitive abilities. But Hamilton claimed that the brain can be tweaked to perform well.

Michael Kahana, a professor of psychology at Penn, has been studying the memory of healthy persons, and he noticed that their memory work well sometimes and not so well at other times. His team reportedly started the study by having a computer learn to recognize electrical signals associated with retrieving memory.

From it, they reportedly predicted a moment-to-moment basis when memory will succeed or fail. According to Kahana, by electrically stimulating the brain when it was about to fail, they could move it from a poor to a better state.

The group devised a method to deliver a precisely timed electrical pulse to a brain region close to the ear. In a small group of individuals without a history of TBI, the technique was effective. At that point, Kahana and Diaz-Arrastia, the TBI specialist, collaborated to design a new experiment.

Eight persons participated in the study, published in the journal Brain Stimulation. They all had wires implanted in their brains because, like earlier subjects, they were assessed for severe epilepsy. Scientists employ these cables to transmit electrical pulses while also monitoring activity. The participants reportedly saw a list of standard English terms like key, car, rose, cat, book, and lamp. They then made an effort to recall the words they had seen.

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Electric Brain Stimulation Effective

According to Kahana, the system sent an electrical pulse to the brain region behind the ear when it detected that a person was likely to experience a memory lapse, and it worked.

Their accuracy increased by about 20% after stimulation, which implies that their memory deficit decreased by about 50%. One business that intends to commercialize this technology has financial ties to Kahana.

Several other businesses are also developing brain stimulation technologies. The systems are made to improve cognition and memory in patients with various illnesses, including Alzheimer's disease.

Stimulating the brain is not new at all. Per the National Institute of Mental Health, there are already existing brain stimulation therapies.

These therapies stimulate the brain and can effectively treat mental illnesses. These treatments work by electrically stimulating or suppressing the brain.

Electrodes can be implanted in the brain to deliver electricity directly, or electrodes can be applied to the scalp to provide electricity indirectly. Magnetic fields can also induce electricity by being applied to the head.