Exploring Rehabilitation Strategies and Biomarkers for Brain Injury
A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Neurorehabilitation".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 1
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This Special Issue aims to characterize the roles of various specific markers of brain tissue damage and neuroinflammation and functional outcomes that can be used for monitoring brain recovery after traumatic brain injury (TBI). The high degree of heterogeneity and variability of symptoms among TBI patients make it difficult to accurately assess the level of trauma and predict the clinical outcomes after TBI. The challenge of "invisible wounds" in mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), especially those resulting from repetitive, low-level concussions, is a significant concern for healthcare providers monitoring long-term outcomes. Conventional neuroimaging methods, such as CT and standard magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequences, often fail to detect the subtle, diffuse axonal injuries (DAIs) that are characteristic of mTBI. Furthermore, the complexity of comorbidities of TBI and post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as other emotional disorders, have complicated diagnosis and treatment. The scope of this issue will cover topics such as the identification of new biomarkers, imaging and blood-based, as well as the predictors of functional outcomes in victims of TBI and their applications for rehabilitation monitoring after TBI.
This encompasses various methodologies, including, but not limited to, imaging markers, e.g., structural and functional MRI, electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG), neurometabolic optical monitoring (NOM), and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS); blood-based biomarkers, e.g., GFAP (glial fibrillary acidic protein), UCH-L1 (ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal hydrolase L1), Extracellular Vesicles (EVs) containing microRNAs and proteins, and other promising biomarkers, including Tau, neurofilament light chain (NfL), S100B, neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and various protein panels; neuropsychological predictors, e.g., cognitive assessments in evaluating attention, memory, processing speed, and executive function; and functional outcome measures such as the Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended (GOS-E) and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM). Further methodologies include other early indicators that can provide valuable insights into the cognitive deficits associated with TBI and help measure the extent of functional recovery after TBI.
We invite original research papers, reviews, and brief communications that mainly address the following topics: (i) biomarkers in assessing brain damage in acute TBI, particularly in mTBI victims with concussions, (ii) longitudinal and cross-sectional studies on the evolution of biomarkers in assessing brain structural and functional changes after TBI, (iii) novel methods identifying biomarkers in assessing brain-specific waste clearance pathways, i.e., the glymphatic system, after brain injury, (iv) neuropsychological assessment in monitoring cognitive functions and functional recovery after brain injury, (v) multi-modal biomarker approaches for better understanding the pathogenesis of comorbidities of TBI and other psychiatric disorders, and (vi) translational research utilizing biomarkers in subject-specific medicine in caring for TBI patients.
All submissions will undergo a rigorous peer review process, ensuring the highest standards of research quality and scientific rigor. We look forward to hearing from you.
Dr. Ping-Hong Yeh
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- traumatic brain injury (TBI)
- biomarkers
- neuroinflammation
- diffuse axonal injury (DAI)
- neuroimaging
- neuropsychological assessment
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