A mathematical equation predicts what recovery will be like after waking up from a coma with an accuracy of 85%: this is demonstrated by a study coordinated by the Institute for biomedical research and innovation of the Cnr of Messina and by the Institute of analysis of systems and informatics of the Cnr of Rome, created thanks to the data collected by the S’Anna Institute of Crotone and other national clinical centres. The findings, published in Scientific Reports, could pave the way for a new system that helps doctors identify the most effective treatments for each patient.
The study examined the clinical data of 156 people hospitalized in intensive rehabilitation facilities for severe acquired brain injury, i.e. extensive brain damage (mostly of traumatic or vascular origin) such as to cause a coma condition that can last for short or long periods of time. For these cases, “although there are some internationally accepted clinical parameters that indicate what the probability of recovery of consciousness may be, it is not currently possible to know exactly what the clinical course will be for each patient”, explains Francesca Lucia Lucca, primary doctor of the Awakening Unit of the S’Anna Institute of Crotone.
By analyzing the clinical conditions of the 156 patients throughout their hospitalization, the researchers were able to model their evolution using a mathematical equation: “For the first time, the evolutionary trajectories of the of conscience of the patients, arriving to predict the recovery of the brain functions of the patients or, in the worst cases, the degree of disability”, affirms Simona Panunzi, researcher of the Cnr-Iasi.
“Having available a greater amount of data recorded throughout the clinical course of patients admitted to neurorehabilitation centers – concludes Antonio Cerasa of the Cnr-Irib – we could soon provide a computational system useful for supporting medical personnel, with continuously updated information on how current treatments can divert the trajectories of clinical outcomes”.
Source: Ansa
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