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With head trauma, there may be brain injuries that lead to the building of amyloid plaques leading to Alzheimer's disease, says research by scientists from the Imperial College, London. In the past decade, the number of patients visiting traumatic brain injury (TBI) emergency rooms has shot up by 70 percent. About three to five million Americans suffer from disabilities stemming from TBI.

"The study is small and the findings preliminary, however, we did find an increased buildup of amyloid plaques in people who had previously sustained a traumatic brain injury," said David Sharp, author of the study, in a press release. "The areas of the brain affected by plaques overlapped those areas affected in Alzheimer's disease, but other areas were involved. People after a head injury are more likely to develop dementia, but it isn't clear why. Our findings suggest TBI leads to the development of the plaques, which are a well-known feature of Alzheimer's disease."

The study looked at nine people with an average age of 44 years, afflicted by moderate to severe TBI. This was confirmed through brain scans undertaken by positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). PET scans helped to find out plaque, even as MRI scans could locate brain cell damage related to TBI. The injuries were inflicted between 11 months to 17 years before the study. Every participant was compared to 10 patients of Alzheimer's disease as well as another control group of nine persons.

The results showed some worrying results. Subjects with TBI as well as with Alzheimer's showed plaques in their posterior cingulate cortex, which is common in the early stages of Alzheimer's. However, those with TBI showed plaques in their cerebellum. With greater damage in the brain's white matter, there were more plaques.

"It suggests that plaques are triggered by a different mechanism after a traumatic brain injury," said Sharp. "The damage to the brain's white matter at the time of the injury may act as a trigger for plaque production."

"If a link between brain injury and later Alzheimer's disease is confirmed in larger studies, neurologists may be able to find prevention and treatment strategies to stave off the disease earlier," he concluded.

The study was published in the Feb. 3 issue of Neurology.