Pre-Recorded Webinar Library

Lithium Protects the Brain, but Not Tumours

Speaker: Klas Blomgren, MD, PhD
Date and Time: March 6, 2024, at 11am Eastern
Supported by International Paediatric Brain Injury Society (IPBIS).

In this webinar we will look at LiBRA, a phase 2, multi-centre, double blind, placebo-controlled, randomised clinical trial of lithium treatment after brain radiotherapy. We expect to recruit 84 children treated with cranial radiotherapy from Sweden and Denmark and randomise them to lithium or placebo (2:1) for 6 months, followed by neuropsychological assessments and imaging for up to 5 years. The primary outcome is processing speed index 2 years after lithium treatment. To date, there are 3 hubs in the world where similar trials are inititated: Karolinska, Stockholm (lithium), Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada (metformin), and St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA (memantine). We envision that in the coming decades, we will combine preventive measures and active treatments, just like we combine anti-tumour treatments, to improve not only survival, but also the QUALITY of survival.

Knowledge Translation in Action: A Comprehensive Web-Based Resource for Family Caregivers of Persons with Disorders of Consciousness

Speakers: Brooke Murtaugh, OTD, OTR/L, CBIST, BT-C and Amy Shapiro-Rosenbaum, PhD
Date and Time: January 31, 2024, at 11am Eastern
Supported by Disorders of Consciousness Special Interest Group

This webinar will disseminate a novel website created for family caregivers of persons with disorders of consciousness after brain injury. The genesis of this project began over seven years ago by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine’s Brain Injury Special Interest Group DoC Task Force. The culmination of this work has resulted in a partnership with BrainLine.org to support development of a “one stop shop” website that allows caregivers to learn about all aspects of DoC care management through evidence-based vetted content, resources, and strategies for self-care. This webinar will briefly review how we engaged families and DoC experts to assist in development of the website, the process of obtaining and vetting content, and developing a partnership with BrainLine.org. Finally, presenters will do a walk-through of the current website to help promote awareness, dissemination, and use in everyday practice for providing education and training to DoC family caregivers.

Casual Conversation with Dr. Collins

Speaker: Micky Collins, MD
Date and Time: January 24, 2024, at 11am Eastern
Supported by Pink Concussions.

Casual Conversations with Brain Injury Professionals was a video podcast hosted by Katherine Price Snedaker, LCSW, PINK Concussions which ran from the Fall of 2020 to 2022, and produced over 50 interviews with brain injury experts which are all available on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@PINKC...).

In a return to this engaging format, Katherine will have a casual conversation with Dr. Collins to provide a deeper dive into how he became involved in this field, his present work ,and what future developments excited him as we look to the next decade in brain injury treatment.

Many Heads are Better Than One: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Building a Research Program in Concussion

Speaker: Roger Zemek, MD
Date and Time: January 17, 2024, at 11am Eastern
Organized by mTBI Special Interest Group.

This webinar will use a program of research in concussion as a case example. as a case example. We will apply strategies to build a structured, incremental and comprehensive program of research in concussion; integrate a team with broad diversity including patient engagement; and establish partnerships with stakeholders for effective, longitudinal knowledge translation.

Self Advocacy and Living Well after Brain Injury

Speaker: Lenore Hawley, MSSW, LCSW
Date and Time: December 6, 2023, at 12 PM Eastern
Organized by North America Brain Injury Society.

This webinar will define the concepts of self-advocacy, empowerment and living well after brain injury. Evidence-based strategies will be discussed for empowering individuals and families with the skills and beliefs needed to advocate for themselves and live well while navigating the chronic challenges of life after brain injury.

Working With Youth Experiencing Persisting Symptoms After Concussion: A Clinician Scientist Perspective

Speaker: Shannon Scratch, Ph.D., C.Psych.
Date and Time: November 30, 2023, at 12 PM Eastern
Organized by International Paediatric Brain Injury Society

This webinar will cover clinical fundamentals of concussion assessment and treatment of persisting symptoms. Recommendations for supporting youth experiencing persisting symptoms after concussion and their families, including a focus on integration of research and clinical guidelines into practice and models of interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary care will be outlined. Case vignettes will also be presented and time for audience questions will be incorporated.

Use of Projects to Support Meaning-Based Rehabilitation and Development of Cognitive-Communication Skills in People With Acquired Brain Injury

Speaker: Nicholas Behn, PhD, MRCSLT
Date and Time: November 29, 2023, 3 PM Eastern
Organized by Social Cognition, Communication and Affect Special Interest Group

In this webinar we will see projects involve people with brain injury working collaboratively in real-life contexts with other people to develop a self-identified concrete or tangible product, which benefits others. Projects have the potential to address impaired skills, improve mood, alter a person’s sense of identity, increase opportunities for social connection and give meaning and purpose to a person’s life. This webinar will briefly describe the origins of projects and how they have been used to support meaning-based rehabilitation for people with communication disorders following brain injury. I will describe some of the core components and provide examples of how projects have been created for a range of services, not just for people with communication disorders. In doing so, the relevance of projects for a range of different professions and for people with a range of clinical diagnoses will be shown.

Challenges and Solutions in the Clinical Translation of [18F]FDG-PET Findings in Disorders of Consciousness - Presentation of an Automated, Free-to-Use Analysis Pipeline

Speaker: Arianna Sala, PhD
Date and Time: November 15, 2023, at 11 AM Eastern
Organized by Disorders of Consciousness Special Interest Group.

In this webinar, we will see how alterations of brain glucose metabolism, as measured by [18F]FDG-PET, are a well-established observation in patients with disorders of consciousness after severe brain injury. The degree of consciousness (arousal and awareness) impairment is associated with decreased brain glucose metabolism at the global and local levels (to highlight both global decreases and alteration of specific networks). As behavioral signs of consciousness (or lack thereof) do not always reflect the level of residual (covert) consciousness, [18F]FDG-PET provides direct insight into cerebral activity, complementing bedside examinations. Still, limited resources for neuroimage analyses hinders quantitative evaluation of [18F]FDG-PET findings in clinical settings. In this talk, we present a free-to-use pipeline to automatically analyze [18F]FDG-PET images in patients with disorders of consciousness. The pipeline requires minimal user intervention and allows to generate ready-to-use statistics for clinical assessment in under 1-2 minutes.

Lurking, Liking, Posting, or Hashtagging: Using Social Media for Connection and its Role in Rehabilitation After Acquired Brain Injury

Speaker: Melissa Brunner, PhD, MHlthSc, BAppSc, CPSP
Date and Time: October 18, 2023, at 4 PM Eastern
Organized by Social Cognition, Communication and Affect Special Interest Group.

Social media can support people with communication disability to access information, social participation, support, and their consumer rights. However, people with acquired brain injury (ABI) experience challenges in using social media and rehabilitation professionals describe being inadequately prepared to support them in its use. This webinar will outline the results of a qualitative metasynthesis of mixed methods research, a scoping review, the development of a bespoke online program, social-ABI-lity, to support people with ABI to use social media safely and enjoyably, and the use of social-ABI-lity in combination with peer support to practice and build social media communication skills. In this webinar, I will describe the benefits and risks of online social relationships and social media use after acquired brain injury; discuss the complexities of addressing social media use during brain injury rehabilitation; and explain where to find resources available to guide the incorporation of social media skills into collaborative social communication rehabilitation goals.

Biopsychosocial Predictors of Pediatric Concussion Outcomes

Speaker: Keith Yeates, PhD, ABPP, FCAHS, FRSC
Date and Time: October 11, 2023, at 12 PM Eastern
Organized by Concussion-mTBI Special Interest Group

The outcomes of pediatric concussion reflect a complex interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors, operating through time, from before to after the injury. This presentation will summarize an ongoing research program that is investigating a range of factors associated with pediatric concussion outcomes, guided by a biopsychosocial model. The webinar will consider implications for clinical practice and future research.

Severe Traumatic Brain Injury Research: An Era of Lessons Learned and Future Directions

Speaker: Yelena G. Bodien, PhD
Date and Time: October 4, 2023, at 12 PM Eastern
Organized by North America Brain Injury Society.

The design and execution of research studies focused on severe traumatic brain injury is complex and requires overcoming barriers related to data acquisition, analysis, and interpretation. In this webinar, we will review 10 lessons learned about the design of TBI research, presented in the context of prior and ongoing studies.

Motivational Interviewing: A Tool to Support Self-Determination and Self-Regulation in Cognitive-Communication Disorders

Speaker: Jerry K. Hoepner, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Date and Time: September 27, 2023, 4PM Eastern
Organized by Social Cognition, Communication and Affect Special Interest Group

This webinar will cover how individuals with cognitive-communication disorders have impaired self-regulation related to poor awareness of their strengths and weaknesses. This strains relationships and increases burden on communication partners. Motivational interviewing is a counseling technique designed to facilitate self-determination and motivation to change behaviors. As such, it is a powerful tool for self-monitoring and self-regulation. This presentation will address ways to incorporate motivational interviewing in goal setting and self-evaluation of goal achievement. Further, techniques such as video review can be used to scaffold self-assessment.

Building Blocks of Learning & Pediatric Brain Injury: Revolutionizing School Supports & Shifting Paradigms

Speaker: Brenda Eagan-Johnson, EdD, CBIST-AP
Date and Time: September 20, 2023, 12PM Eastern
Organized by International Paediatric Brain Injury Society.

This webinar will solidify your understanding of Acquired Brain Injury (ABI), a primary cause of disability in children, teens, and young adults that often leads to long-term medical, rehabilitation, and educational implications.

This webinar will also share key insights learned from the nationally recognized BrainSTEPS Brain Injury School Consulting Program in Pennsylvania (PA) over the last 16 years, a statewide program jointly funded by the PA Department of Health and PA Department of Education.

Opening the Door to Inpatient Rehabilitation for Individuals With Disorders of Consciousness

Speaker: Jean Woo, MD
Date and Time: September 12, 2023, 11am Eastern
Organized by Disorders of Consciousness Special Interest Group.

In this webinar, we will see patients with disorders of consciousness (DoC) continue to have limited access to inpatient rehabilitation, despite the increasing amount of evidence showing the benefits of rehabilitative interventions. This poses detrimental consequences in functional recovery and outcome for this patient population. In this webinar, we will discuss common barriers, fundamental causes of such barriers, and how to overcome those barriers to advocate for rehabilitation for this patient population. There will be a discussion on how to justify inpatient rehabilitation to the payers using current literature and data.

Equal Play, Equal Protection: Towards Understanding Brain Injury in Female Athletes

Speaker: Elisabeth Williams, PhD
Date and Time: September 6, 2023, 11am Eastern
Organized by PINK Concussions. Moderated by Katherine Snedaker, LCSW.

In this webinar, we will see how the application of male-centric concussion research findings to females in sports disregards their unique physiological characteristics, posing a significant issue. Females exhibit distinct anatomical differences in the cervical spine, axonal variances in the brain, and hormonal profile changes that can impact brain injury occurrence and outcomes. Recent findings report both sex and gender differences to influence brain injury incidence, management, and recovery. A combination of neck strength screening, video analysis, and head impact telemetry, have enabled a deeper understanding of head impact biomechanics in university female rugby players. This research serves as a foundation for developing tailored training strategies that effectively minimise the risk of brain injuries in this population.

Customized Settings for Outcome Oriented Brain Injury Rehabilitation and Systems of Service Delivery

Speaker: David Ripley, MD, MS, CRC, FAAPM&R
Date and Time: August 10, 2023, at 12pm Eastern
Organized by North American Brain Injury Society.

Prior to joining HealthBridge, he served as Section Chief of Brain Injury Medicine and Rehabilitation and Medical Director of Worker’s Compensation Physician Practice at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab (formerly Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago), and was Program Director of the James and Carmela O’Boyle Fellowship in Brain Injury Medicine. Dr. Ripley’s clinical practice has included evaluating and managing patients with neurotrauma throughout the continuum of care. He is widely published and has lectured nationally and internationally. He is Board Certified in both PM&R and Brain Injury Medicine.

This webinar will discuss the evolution of different settings for the provision of care for individuals with traumatic brain injury in the United States. Clinical, economic, and political pressures on how the current system of care developed will be discussed, with a focus on how each component plays a role in the recovery of individuals with brain injury.

Return to Learn and Sport after Sport Related Concussion – an Update

Speaker: Margot Putukian, MD, FACSM, FAMSSM
Date and Time: August 9, 2023, at 11:00am Eastern
Organized by Concussion - mTBI Special Interest Group

This webinar will provide an overview of the systematic review of the literature on clinical recovery, return to learn (RTL) and return to sport (RTS) strategies after sport-related concussion. Understanding the complexity of mild traumatic brain injury and the limitations of the current literature is important. The webinar will review the updated RTL and RTS recommendations from the Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport Conference in Amsterdam.

EENACOMA: A Model of Care for Disorders of Consciousness

Speaker: Willemijn van Erp, MD, PhD
Date: May 25, 2023

Diagnostic and prognostic uncertainty, fragmented care after the acute phase, over- and undertreatment and ethical dilemma’s in deciding what is appropriate treatment: challenges in daily practice for patients with disorders of consciousness are universal. The Netherlands, however, until very recently did a particularly bad job in providing the necessary care for PDOC. Only patients younger than 25 received specialized rehabilitation; outside of those mere 14 weeks, they fell into the cracks of the care system.

2019 however saw a drastic reform. Virtually all PDOC patients are now eligible for a specialized care trajectory that can cover up to 24 months post-injury. How did this change come about? In this session, Van Erp will highlight the key ingredients to change in PDOC practice and its challenges, and invite the audience to a discussion on how to make use of the Dutch experience in other countries.

Additional Pre-recorded Webinars

Please see links below to previous webinar content.

Authentic Partnerships: A Model for Building on Lived Experiences to Co-Design Caregiver Supports After Pediatric ABI
Caron Gan & Brenda Agnew
Link to recording: Click here. Please note that there was a problem with one of the videos not playing properly during the webinar; to view the video with sound, click here.

Brainstorm: Neuroinflammation, TBI, and Co-Occurring Psychiatric Symptoms
Lisa Brenner, PhD
Link to recording: Click here

Childhood Stroke: Medical Aspects, Consequences and Implications for Interventions
Eli Gunnarson
Link to recording: Click here

Neuroendocrine Dysfunction After TBI: A Practical Approach to Evaluation and Management
Tamara L. Wexler, MD, PhD
Link to session recording: click here

Rehabilitation Services and Long-Term Discharge Planning for Febrile Infection-Related Epilepsy Syndrome (FIRES) Patients: A Single Institution Review
Kimberly Davis
Link to recording: Click here.

Sensory Stimulation for Children and Youth with Disorders of Consciousness: Recommendations from the Developing Evidence-base
Wendy L. Magee & Valerie Paasch
Link to recording: Click here

TeleTherapy through Pandemic and Beyond
Janet Williams
Link to session recording: click here.

The Search for Consciousness: Functional Neuroimaging in the Acute Brain Injured State
Adrian Owen
Link to session recording: click here

Traumatic Brain Injury in Pre-School children
Juliet Haarbauer-Krupa
Link to recording: Click here

Updates on Diagnosis, Prognosis and Treatment of Paediatric Disorders of Consciousness
Erika Molteni
Link to recording: Click here

Using Apps to Develop Executive Function Skills
Michelle Wild & Penny Trayner
Link to recording: click here

What is Teen Online Problem Solving and How Can It Help Adolescents with TBI during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Shari Wade
Link to session recording: click here

Questions
For questions, please contact congress@internationalbrain.org.