Dietlose

Ever since the New Jersey Supreme Court liberalized and modernized the use of learned treatises, the use of medical literature to support one’s theories or to cross-examine an adversary’s experts has proven helpful. [N.J.R.E. 803(c)(18); Jacober v. Saint Peter’s Medical Center, 128 N.J. 475 (1992).]

While this liberalization was a welcomed change to the stifling old rule, which in reality prevented the use of learned treatises, new issues regarding the validity of medical research mandates that the trial attorney now research not only one’s opponent’s experts, but investigate the authors of those learned treatises which will be relied upon by one’s adversary.

Prior to 1992, one could only utilize a learned treatise during cross-examination, if and only if, the defense expert acknowledged that the learned treatise was authoritative. Should the expert fail or refuse to acknowledge such authoritativeness, the attorney was precluded from using the learned treatise to cross-examine that expert. In 1992, the New Jersey Supreme Court in Jacober, adopted the Federal Rule of Evidence regarding the introduction and use of learned treatises. Shortly thereafter, the “Jacober rule” was codified and became a part of New Jersey’s Rules of Evidence, 803 (c) (18).

This is an excerpt from the article, Beware of the Literature Reprinted: Investigation of adversary's treatises is now required, from the September 22, 2008 edition of the New Jersey Law Journal. You can read the full article here (PDF).

With the recent and overwhelming reports of the severe brain trauma suffered, and more often ignored, by members of the National Football League, researchers at Boston University's School of Medicine have a new plan to study the long-term effects of concussion trauma on a player's brain. A dozen athletes, including six N.F.L. players and a former United States women’s soccer player, have agreed to donate their brains after their deaths to the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy.

The new Boston University center is being financed primarily by the university and a $100,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health, said Dr. Robert A. Stern, the program co-director along with McKee. It will operate in collaboration with the Sports Legacy Institute, a nonprofit organization founded last year by Chris Nowinski, the former Harvard University football player and professional wrestler, and Dr. Robert Cantu, a co-director of the Neurological Sports Injury Center at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston.

You can read more on this story in a New York Times article here.

The Department of Defense has awarded $60 million in funding, the largest grant ever, for the study of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. The grant was given to doctors at the University of California San Diego and several other research hospitals in the area.

The proposed study of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injuries will research prevention and treatment options for both military personnel and civilians suffering from these conditions.

It is one of the largest research grants the UCSD has ever received, which researchers and doctors alike hope will aid in the cure and prevention of PTSD and TBI. These injuries have been called the “signature” wounds of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. About 300,000 veterans of these conflicts suffer from PTSD or major depression, and about 320,000 likely have sustained brain injuries in the field,  according to a RAND Corp. study released in April.

You can read more on the grant and the research project here.

I have written several times in the past on the devastating effects of sport related concussions in children. More and more the injuries are being pushed aside in order to further a child's athletic career. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the staggering statistics. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, children between the ages of 9 and 18 suffer 96,000 sport related concussions each year.

A recent New York Times article highlights the potential for serious injury in children, due to the fact that brain tissue at such young ages are still developing, and sustaining a serious injury during formation can damage a child's ability to progress later on in life. As the number of injuries increases, so does the need for education and prevention. The more we know and understand about child sport-related injuries, the easier it will be to prevent them before they have the chance of happening.

I recently found an extremely interesting and inspiring story on ABC News.com which highlights what some call a medical mystery for stroke victims. The story is that of several stroke survivors who after returning home from the hospital began a compulsive obsession for art.

From painting, to poetry, to carving, these stroke survivors all had the same artistic medical mystery. Doctors still can not explain the cause of this new found obsession and talent. While the adjustment to a new way of life, and thinking, was difficult at first for these survivors, the newfound interest in art and friendship of another experiencing the same medical mystery has brought two stroke survivors from across the country together.

You can really the full story and video on ABCNews.com here.