A New Way to Recover From a Concussion and Avoid Alzheimer’s Disease

Donald Redelmeier, MD, serves as the Canada Research Chair in Medical Decision Sciences; professor of medicine at the University of Toronto; director of Evaluative Clinical Sciences at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre; and a senior scientist at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences. Dr. Redelmeier has published over 200 articles in the scientific literature, emphasizing medical decision science and the epidemiology of trauma. The current project represents a further investigation along the same theme, addressing the late consequences of brain injury on Alzheimer’s disease and the potential protective benefits of statins in improving brain recovery after a concussion. 

"I am a physician at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Canada’s largest trauma center. My team has helped save the lives of many patients following a traffic crash, major fall, athletic injury, or other blunt trauma. With follow-up, however, I realize that many lives do not return to normal, particularly if the patient is older and suffered a concussion. The change in health can be remarkable, such as one patient transformed from a robust energetic retiree who bicycled daily to a depressed fragile senior unable to play cards. The intent of my research is to find ways to help older patients recover from a concussion."