Violence and murder have their roots in biological, psychological, and sociological factors. This article will focus on one specific element of the biological aspects of violence and murder; specifically; neurological and neuropsychological aspects.
By Octavio Choi, MD, PhD fpamed Forensic Psychiatrist Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a type of injury that is caused by a sudden and violent blow or jolt to the head. It can result in a wide range of organic/cognitive/emotional injuries and behavioral symptoms, depending on the severity of the head trauma. One area where […]
By Forensic Psychiatrist Mark I Levy, MD, DLFAPA Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (“mTBI” or “concussion”) is a frequent claim in civil litigation where the plaintiff has sustained a head injury. The best evaluation of these claims is performed by a 3-part team of forensic neurologist, neuropsychologist and psychiatrist. The neurologist addresses and structural damage to […]
—Mark I Levy, MD An article featured on 6-29-16 in the online medical journal MedPage Today reports recent neurological studies on post-mortem examinations of the brains of soldiers who survived blast trauma in combat. The study highlights “Specific astroglial scar pattern seen in postmortem exams” of these soldiers that appear to be unique to blast […]
An February 8, 2016 article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal entitled “Risk of Suicide After Concussion” suggests that there is an increase of suicidal behavior post concussion, especially on weekend. Most of the attempted and completed suicides visited a physician shortly before attempting to take their own life. The “take-away” from this article is […]
This is a striking Danish study showing the strong association between head trauma and subsequent psychiatric illness. The Voice of the American Psychiatric Association and the Psychiatric Community THURSDAY, APRIL 3, 2014 Risk for Psychiatric Disorders Increases After Head Injury, Study Finds Studies on the relationship of head injury to later development of psychiatric disorders have produced […]
This article posted today in JAMA Neurology, offers the promise of an objective biomarker for mTBI. Such a biomarker, if its reliability is established, would enable forensic psychiatric, neuropsychiatric and neurologic experts to offer to the trier of fact objective evidence for the presence of a mTBI. from Psychiatric News Alert, the voice of the American […]
An interesting article published in the January 15, 2014 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association – Psychiatry (JAMA Psychiatry) concerns the fate of a small minority of traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients who die prematurely. A study in Sweden between 1969 and 2009 followed 218,300 patient who survived more than six months […]
Traumatic brain injury (“TBI”) is diagnosed in nearly two million people each year as a result of falls, traffic accidents, being struck by various objects, and assaults. This type of injury is categorized as neurologic and is treated by medical specialists called neurologists. While these specially trained physicians are experts at treating the physical component […]
Pentagon spends $300M to study troops’ stress, trauma By Gregg Zoroya, USA TODAY The Pentagon is spending an unprecedented $300 million this summer on research for post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, offering hope not only for troops but hundreds of thousands of civilians. The money — the most spent in one year on […]