The University of Vermont Medical Center HealthSource brain blog is your leading source for brain news, brain articles and nervous system articles from industry experts. Read through a collection of brain and nervous system information on a variety of topics such as Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, Parkinson’s disease and more. The HealthSource brain blog features an array of regular authors and contributors from the medical world including doctors, nutritionists, nurse practitioners and healthcare experts.
Every morning, when Katie MacDonald opens her eyes, she has a migraine. And not just a headache. There’s a cascade of other symptoms – debilitating body aches, brain fog and fatigue. After several hours, the symptoms fade, but only temporarily. Sometime in the afternoon, inevitably, they come crashing back. For the past 31 years, Katie […]
When you think of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), most people think of sports injuries or motor vehicle crashes. And it’s not surprising. TBIs, including concussions, are often covered in the media in relation to football players or student athletes. As a Level 1 Trauma Center, we see traumatic brain injuries in a very different light. […]
Recently, the World Health Organization released its first-ever guidelines for reducing risk for dementia and cognitive decline. Today, dementia is a global-health priority. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predict that the U.S. burden of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias will double by 2060 to 13.9 million people. The guidelines seek to help people […]
Most of us can say we know someone who has had a stroke. The facts speak volumes: A stroke happens every 40 seconds in the United States Every 4 minutes, someone dies of a stroke It is the fifth leading cause of death in the United States Although they occur more commonly in those over the […]
When it comes to stroke, there are many risk factors that are beyond your control, including Being over age 55; Being a female (each year, women have more strokes than men, and stroke kills more women than men. Use of birth control pills, pregnancy, history of preeclampsia/eclampsia or gestational diabetes, oral contraceptive use, and smoking, […]
Most people think MIGRAINE = BAD HEADACHE. But that’s not true… The headache of migraine is often such a profound part of the experience that is all most people think about. But there are many other (non-headache) migraine symptoms, including heightened senses (of light, sound, and smell), a sense of disequilibrium or imbalance, and nausea. […]
Are you ready for a fun-filled and safe winter season!? The UVM Medical Center’s Rehab Therapy Center wants to ensure you know everything you need to in order to stay healthy. Concussion or traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a hot topic today — and for good reason. Sports-related concussions impact about 3.8 million athletes each […]
Glaucoma affects nearly three million Americans and is a major cause of vision loss and blindness around the world. The disease is most common as we age. Beyond age sixty-five, it develops in 2-3 percent of whites and 4-6 percent of African-Americans. It also occurs in infancy and middle age, but this is less common. […]
November is National Family Caregivers Month. In the United States, more than 15 million informal caregivers, primarily family, provide unpaid care to people with Alzheimer’s disease. It can take a devastating toll. Studies show that caregivers have higher rates of depression, anxiety, insomnia, and cardiovascular disease. Caregiving is truly one of the ultimate acts of […]
When the UVM Medical Center’s Frederick C. Binter Center for Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disordersopened, an immediate goal was to provide more exercise opportunities for patients with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Studies show exercise is helpful for the movement challenges that come with the disease, but there is also evidence that additional barriers to exercise exist, […]
