Pilot Awards

To support innovation in basic and clinical brain injury research, CBI offers seed grants to interdisciplinary teams of scientists. These pilot projects help teams form, develop preliminary findings, and publish papers in advance of large federally- or industry-funded grants. CBI is developing a clinical trials component to these grants to help test promising drugs, devices, and non-pharmacological therapies. A full list of our pilot projects is available here.

Data Repository

Led by investigators Jasmeet Hayes and Scott Hayes, the this project aims to deeply characterize brain injury survivors as they age. This effort will enable the team, along with other investigators at Ohio State and beyond, to closely study how chronic brain injury manifests over time and to identify biomarkers of cognitive decline and resiliency. Learn more about the MINDSET LAB and B-BAL LAB teams.

Seminars & Grand Rounds

CBI is building and supporting teams of researchers by convening scientists at our monthly seminars and quarterly grand rounds. These activities create collisions between scientists and clinicians from different disciplines. These connections are paramount to move discovery in the lab to interventions in the clinic or at home. A list of upcoming presentations is here.

Paper of the Year

Each calendar year, CBI recognizes the most impactful publication by our faculty affiliates. The 2019 nominees were:

• Watzlawick et al. Outcome heterogeneity and bias in acute experimental spinal cord injury. Neurology.
• Nemeth et al. Provider Perceptions and Domestic Violence (DV) Survivor Experiences of Traumatic and Anoxic-Hypoxic Brain Injury: Implications for DV Advocacy Service Provision. J. Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma.
• Worthen-Chaudhari et al. Partnered, adapted argentine tango dance for cancer survivors: A feasibility study and pilot study of efficacy. Clinical Biomechanics.
• Rafiei et al. Predicting Improved Daily Use of the More Affected Arm Post-Stroke Following Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy. Physical Therapy.
• Sammartino, Yeh & Krishna. Longitudinal analysis of structural changes following unilateral focused ultrasound thalamotomy. NeuroImage: Clinical.
• Norden et al. Bone Marrow-Derived Monocytes Drive the Inflammatory Microenvironment in Local and Remote Regions after Thoracic Spinal Cord Injury. Neurotrauma.
• Liu et al. Cell-Type-Specific Interleukin 1 Receptor 1 Signaling in the Brain Regulates Distinct Neuroimmune Activities. Immunity.

Ohio TBI Registry

Traumatic brain injuries are complicated due to varied causes (falls, traffic accidents, sports injury, violence), several at-risk groups (older adults, young children, active-duty military and veterans), and under-reporting of injury. Some estimates suggest up to 50% of concussions may go unreported, but even these mild traumatic brain injuries can have lasting health and life consequences. If we don't know about these injuries, we cannot help or study the survivors to improve their lives, or prevent others from injury.

To help connect injury survivors to medical care and research, CBI is developing Ohio's first voluntary registry in which brain injury survivors from around the state - or nation - can sign up to participate in research studies, regardless of if they have received care at Ohio State or other providers. Through this effort, we will improve our ability to do meaningful research for survivors who are struggling with the chronic effects of brain injury.

Check this page for future updates!

NeuroNights: Survivor and Caregiver Workshops

CBI and Ohio State's Outpatient Rehabilitation teams host monthly workshops for brain injury survivors and their families focused on promoting lifelong wellness after brain injury. Supported by undergraduate student volunteers from Buckeyes Raising Awareness in Neuroscience (BRAIN), these workshops will bring experts from across Ohio State's campus to educate and enable the brain injury community to adopt healthy behaviors, navigate financial and legal challenges, and generally encourage independent and productive living.

Learn more about NeuroNights here.

Connect & Collaborate: Community Partners in Research

Improving the Quality of Life of Chronically Ill Individuals Through Financial Coaching | Caezilia Loibl et al.

Brain injury, like other chronic illnesses, can result in financial challenges and caregiver burden, including debt, loss of income, and high stress. This project brings Ohio State researchers in Education & Human Ecology, John Glenn College of Public Affairs, Ohio State Extension, Kirwan Institute, and Ohio Valley Center together with community and industry partners including Brain Injury Association of Ohio, Apprisen, and WesBanco Bank to develop best practices and measure impact for financial coaching of brain injury survivors and caregivers. Patients at Ohio State are enrolled in regular financial coaching sessions that focus on setting goals and overcoming barriers to improve financial security, social participation, and quality of life.

Drum-Dance Rehabilitation | Yune Lee et al.

Demand for non-pharmacological interventions for Parkinson's disease has been increasing, as standard treatments for neurodegenerative diseases are costly and sometimes invasive. Brain injury survivors are at a higher risk for Parkinson's, so drug-free interventions can help survivors avoid and mitigate chronic effects of brain injury. This project is developing a novel therapy that combines dance and rhythmic drumming to improve outcomes and decrease financial burden of Parkinson's patients. Fostered by a partnership between Ohio State's Department of Speech & Hearing Sciences, School of Music, Wexner Medical Center, and community organizations Delay the Disease and Parkinson's Foundation of Ohio, this project features fitness classes, neuroimaging assessments, and a new service-learning course.

A Virtual Reality App to Improve Youth Concussion Recognition | Ginger Yang et al.

To address growing concerns about youth sports concussion, all 50 states have enacted concussion laws that require all athletes, parents and coaches to be educated about concussion. However, there is little guidance on how this education should be provided and often leaves youth athletes unable to recognize the signs of concussion or understand the importance of reporting. This project is developing a novel virtual reality simulation of concussion symptoms to better prepare youth to recognize and report these symptoms. This team brings together Nationwide Children's Hospital, Ohio State's School of Communication, the Mid-Ohio Select Soccer League and COSI to develop the app and test it with two youth soccer teams in advance of a large federal grant.

Blast Injury in Veterans

fNIRS Imaging Core

Biomechanics Monitoring

Data Systems for Coordinated Care

Get involved with these projects by clicking HERE.