Physiotherapist Led Stress Inoculation Intervention Integrated With Exercise For Acute Whiplash Injury
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$518,960.00
Summary
Physical and mental health outcomes following whiplash injury due to a road traffic crash are poor. Early stress system responses are associated with poor recovery. This study will investigate the effectiveness of a physiotherapist led stress inoculation intervention integrated with currently recommended exercise rehabilitation to improve health outcomes after whiplash injury.
Whiplash injury incurs a huge health burden on Australia as many people do not recover well. This project aims to implement and evaluate a Clinical Pathway of Care for whiplash injury that guides primary care providers in their assessment and treatment of people with acute whiplash. This will improve health ouctomes and recovery following the injury.
Trauma-focused CBT & Exercise For Chronic Whiplash: Addressing All Aspects Of A Chronic Condition
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$673,562.00
Summary
Chronic pain following whiplash injury is common and incurs substantial personal and economic costs. There are few effective treatments available. Recent research has shown that many people with chronic whiplash also have symptoms of posttraumatic stress. This study will investigate whether combining an intervention aimed at decreasing posttraumatic stress with exercise will decrease pain and disability in people with chronic whiplash
Development Of A Novel Bioengineered Tissue Construct For Repairing The Eye.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$335,817.00
Summary
Corneal diseases are often treated using donor tissue transplants. Nevertheless, donor tissue is unsuitable for treating the peripheral or limbal margin of the cornea. We have therefore developed a way to transplant sheets of limbal tissue (epithelium) grown in the laboratory from a patient's own cells, but this tissue lacks a foundation of connective tissue that we believe is essential for sustained healing. Thus, our aim is to develop a novel limbal transplant which contains both layers.
This study investigates how much an individual's genes and environment account for the wide variation in brain structure and function. Using brain imaging we examine in what way the connectivity of the brain of identical and non-identical twins is the same or different from that of their co-twin, and carry out analysis of their DNA to identify some of the genes involved. This will provide fundamental information on genetic mechanisms influencing variation in brain structure and function.
A Prospective Study Of Language Impairment And Recovery Following Surgery For Brain Tumours
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$861,342.00
Summary
This multi-site project will investigate the incidence and nature of post-operative language difficulties (aphasia) in patients following surgery for left hemisphere primary brain tumours. It will provide comprehensive data concerning risk factors for post-surgical aphasia in Australian patients, in addition to important information about the brain lesions responsible for its various clinical presentations. This information will be used to generate recommendations for clinical practice.
Normal And Abnormal Development Of Brain Wiring And Its Impact On Brain Function
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$763,845.00
Summary
My laboratory is striving to understand how the patterns of neuronal connections form in the developing brain and how these underpin the functions of the brain throughout life. We use high-field magnetic resonance imaging to measure brain wiring and we investigate the genetic and environmental mechanisms causing developmental brain disorders that result in intellectual disability, autism, epilepsy and some mental illnesses.
Effective Management Of Acute Whiplash Injuries Requires A Pragmatic Approach: An RCT With Stratified Treatments
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$382,550.00
Summary
Whiplash injuries from a motor vehicle crash continue to incur substantial personal and financial costs to the community and the insurance industry. The current approaches to an acute whiplash injury in Australia and internationally have failed to lessen the rate of how many people develop chronic neck pain. Between 40 and 60% still have pain 6 months after injury. Motor Accident Insurance Commission (Qld) figures indicate that 20% of patients with chronic whiplash account for 60% of the costs. ....Whiplash injuries from a motor vehicle crash continue to incur substantial personal and financial costs to the community and the insurance industry. The current approaches to an acute whiplash injury in Australia and internationally have failed to lessen the rate of how many people develop chronic neck pain. Between 40 and 60% still have pain 6 months after injury. Motor Accident Insurance Commission (Qld) figures indicate that 20% of patients with chronic whiplash account for 60% of the costs. Transition from an acute to a chronic condition must be prevented. A new direction in management in the acute stage is urgently required as once the pain has become chronic, it is difficult to help. This research will conduct a novel randomised controlled trial for acute whiplash. It will test individually prescribed multi-professional management against usual care with the aim to lessen the numbers who go on to develop chronic pain. It will be the first clinical trial that acknowledges from the outset that the whiplash injuries and affects people in different ways. Our previous research with acute whiplash patients has documented the variations in presentation from physical, physiological and psychological perspectives. In this trial, management will be prescribed as directed by measurable pain, muscle and psychological impairments in the individual, rather than regard all patients as the same as in other trials. This trial will offer individualised treatments; medical, physiotherapy and-or psychological using an empirically derived treatment algorithm. Cost-effectiveness of the program will be evaluated against that incurred during usual care. It is predicted that early multi-professional management will be less expensive in the long term than existing approaches. This RCT stands to extend knowledge in the management of whiplash associated disorders (WAD).Read moreRead less
Uncovering The Neural Mechanisms Of Obsessive-compulsive Disorder Using Brain Modelling
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$581,628.00
Summary
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an incurable mental illness and current therapies only mitigate its symptoms for a portion of individuals. Thus, there is a need to identify the neural causes of OCD to develop personalised therapies. We will combine mathematical modelling, computer simulations, and clinical and neuroimaging data to develop the first model of OCD. Outcomes from this study will enable targeted OCD research and the discovery of brain mechanisms supporting treatment response.
Dopamine Neuron Ontogeny: Convergent Neurobiological Pathway For Risk Factors Of Schizophrenia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$337,214.00
Summary
Schizophrenia is associated with changes in dopamine (a signalling molecule in the brain). These changes are present prior to psychosis, suggesting they begin early in development. Our aims are to manipulate key factors in the development of brain dopamine systems to clarify their role in psychosis and schizophrenia. This work has the potential to identify early brain changes that lead to schizophrenia, which in turn may generate better diagnoses and outcomes for people with this disorder.