Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a constant threat in the combat sports world. Many competitors in the MMA and boxing sectors have died in TBI in recent years. Joao Carvalho, who died in an MMA fight in Dublin in 2016, Tim Hague, who died after a boxing match in Edmonton in 2017, and Patrick Day, who died after a boxing match in Chicago earlier this month.
In combat sports, the TBI usually has a severe impact on the head, which severely affects the brain inside the skull. This action can lead to tearing of blood vessels, which can lead to bleeding inside the brain. When blood collects in the brain, pressure is applied between the brain and the skull. Without timely surgical intervention, pressure can cause fatal brain damage.
TBI can sometimes be difficult to diagnose quickly because there are no visible symptoms that someone is having cerebral hemorrhage. Many fighters who died from this injury first experienced what was known as clear intervals. It is a place where the brain bleeds, but we do not know there are serious problems. Awareness intervals can last for minutes, hours or days. After this period, a person with cerebral hemorrhage may begin to experience symptoms such as pain, disorientation, or loss of consciousness, allowing them to receive medical treatment.
Due to the clear intervals, along with the time it takes to transport the patient to a trauma center where brain surgery can be performed, medical intervention often occurs too late to save the lives of those who have had TBI.
According to tutelary Researchers have found that common drugs can help TBI patients quickly and save lives.
Research published in the medical journal lance This month, a group of scientists from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine concluded that the tranxamic acid (TXA), already used to slow the bleeding rate to poke and shoot victims, could bleed slowly. . brain.
TXA is a widely used drug found in most operating rooms. It is used routinely in high-risk surgery to reduce the risk of bleeding. TXA is also used in some dental clinics to reduce bleeding during surgery and procedures. The drug is also commonly used after childbirth, and the standard dosage is about $ 8 per person, which is relatively inexpensive.
"Before this study, isolated head injury patients were an exception to the policy of providing tranexamic acid to trauma patients as soon as possible," said Ian Roberts, who co-led the study. "Now I can remove the exception."
Roberts said his study could have a wide range of effects if it was standard to administer to TBI as soon as tranexamic acid was diagnosed. "It has the potential to save tens of thousands of lives worldwide. This is a huge problem."
Robert's study examined cases in 29 countries involving more than 9,000 patients treated within 3 hours of injury. The study found that transexamic acid lowers the risk of death in people with mild traumatic brain injury.
“Remembering that 90% of head injuries are minor and moderate, we can't die because we've got something that can lead to death by preventing bleeding into the brain. Roberts said.