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  • 10 (Not-So-Obvious) Truths About Brain Injuries

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 4-Mar-2024

    Though simple sounding, the umbrella term “brain injury” includes several diagnoses that range from mild to severe in their impact on the brain and the symptoms they produce in the person experiencing one. More than one million people in the United States sustain a brain injury each year, and millions more live with lasting and frequently debilitating effects from these injuries. While ...
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  • Brain and Heart Health - An Unbreakable Bond

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 12-Feb-2024

    For various complicated reasons, Americans have been historically conditioned to think of our bodies as a collection of independent organs, each functioning in isolation. Such a notion couldn't be further from the truth. Indeed, our bodies are intricate ecosystems, with every organ, nerve, muscle, and tissue fiber interconnected and influencing the health of others. Perhaps nowhere is this ...
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  • The B-ASE Program for Neurologic Peak Performance

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 5-Feb-2024

    Among the most fascinating aspects of being human is our unique ability to develop new skills while also honing and enhancing those we already possess. With practice, most people can learn to do something new – play a musical instrument or sport, or develop an artistic ability, for example. However, not everyone who becomes "able" to perform a new skill will host a ...
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  • When your head is pounding, it’s hard to think about anything besides getting rid of your headache ASAP. But before you reach for a pain reliever, it’s important to understand whether you’re dealing with a migraine or a tension headache. Why? It’ll help you pinpoint the most effective remedy to ease the ache. That’s why we asked the experts how to differentiate ...
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  • Article Links: What’s a stinger? Is 49ers’ Brock Purdy prone to keep suffering them? (sfchronicle.com) What’s a stinger and is 49ers’ Brock Purdy prone to keep suffering them? (msn.com) Brock Purdy has suffered a stinger in each of the past two games, which leads to a few obvious questions: What exactly is a stinger? And does its reoccurrence in Purdy signal potential ...
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  • Finding Relief from Chronic Pain this Holiday Season

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 1-Dec-2023

    The winter months are among the toughest for people experiencing the effects of chronic pain. The latter part of the calendar year is characterized by holiday activities, which can bring tremendous joy but also significantly affect one’s routine, including sleep and dietary choices. Of course, the burgeoning chill in the air can also contribute to pain's impact on the body and feelings ...
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  • Often, when people think about "research," it brings to mind sterilized labs where closely controlled tests are conducted by scientists in white coats on various subjects. Although lab research is fundamental to the progress of science and medicine, it isn't the only way scientific research studies are performed. Recently, I was involved in a type of research called the Modified ...
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  • Taking a Position on Brain Health

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 1-Dec-2023

    The American Academy of Neurology (AAN), the organization involved in promoting high-quality neurologic care and assistance to neurologic health professionals, recently released a position statement on its goals for the brain health of all Americans by the year 2050. In its report, the AAN provides a highlighted overview of its plan to help people improve their brain health across the lifespan. ...
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  • "What a headache" is a figure of speech used to describe stressful situations. Of course, we know actual headaches are equally—if not more—troubling. The physical pain may result in the need to cancel plans, lost PTO and a reduced quality of life. Some headache causes, such as viral symptoms, can't be avoided (sorry). However, neurologists want you to know that other ...
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  • Tell me if this sounds familiar: You go to bed intending to sleep at least seven hours so that you’re ready to start the next day bright and early. When your alarm goes off, you think, “Great, I got so much sleep,” only to find yourself yawning non-stop and fending off the urge to lie back down. What gives? Well, optimum sleep is more than just the number of hours you get each ...
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  • What Is a Neurologist and When Should You See One?

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 25-Sep-2023

    A neurologist is a doctor who specializes in conditions that affect your brain, spinal cord and nervous system. Your nervous system controls all you body's functions – from processing memories to the beating of your heart. Neurologists focus on understanding and treating neurological problems, including headaches, sleep disorders and Alzheimer’s disease. In this guide we explore ...
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  • Why a Bay Area football star gave up his NFL dream for blue-collar job

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 15-Sep-2023

    By 4:30 p.m. most days, after 10 hours of demolishing concrete, sanding railings and installing light switches, Cade Hall’s muscles ache. It’s a pain he can live with. After spending well over a decade battering his body as he blitzed quarterbacks, Hall has found peace working construction. His hourly wage is a fraction of what he could be making as a professional football player. A ...
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  • 7 Easy Things You Can Do Every Day to Keep Your Mind Sharp

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 6-Sep-2023

    As you age, preserving and promoting your cognitive health becomes ever more important. And while there are countless tools and programs that claim to keep your mind sharp as you get older, experts say that the most important things you can do are actually simple, accessible, and free. Not only do these everyday interventions promote excellent cognitive health, but many of them also contribute to ...
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  • Ninety-five days before Damar Hamlin collapsed on the same yard line on the same field, Tua Tagovailoa was thrown to the turf at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati. His elbow slammed down first, then his back, then finally his helmet ricocheting off the field and leaving him unconscious. It was a legal play with a vicious consequence, a horrifying scene similar to the one that played out three months ...
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  • A new analysis looking at data from five population-based studies delved deeper into the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea, lack of sufficient sleep, and cognitive function. The analysis found that preventing obstructive sleep apnea — when a person’s breathing is interrupted during sleep — and better sleep consolidation was linked to better cognitive function in the ...
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  • Best Life Quotes Dr. Williams: 6 Best Brain Games to Keep Your Mind Sharp

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 31-Jul-2023

    As you get older, it's normal to notice some minor changes in your cognitive abilities. For instance, you may find as you reach your senior years that it's a bit more difficult to sustain your attention, multitask, find the right word, or recall information as quickly as you once did. "Some changes in the ability to think are considered a normal part of the aging process," says ...
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  • Researchers looked at cognitive function over 10 years in 8,958 people aged 50 and older in England. The study found people who slept between 6 and 8 hours per night and engaged in higher levels of physical activity were linked with better cognitive function. People who slept fewer than 6 hours a night, even if they engaged in higher levels of physical activity, experienced more rapid cognitive ...
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  • Pain as an Experience - Not a Sensation

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 7-Jul-2023

    As a physician specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of chronic pain, I am often faced with the truth that pain is not simply a sensation but an experience unique to the individual. Each person's pain response to an acute injury or chronic condition is contingent upon a wide array of factors that aren't only physical. Among the many reasons that pain can be challenging to manage is ...
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  • Lower back pain is the single leading cause of disability worldwide. In 2020, 619 million people globally were affected by the condition. By 2050, this figure is expected to increase to 843 million. Neck pain is also a leading contributor to disability worldwide and is estimated to be the fourth leading cause of disability in terms of “years lived with disability.” Clinical guidelines ...
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  • Pain occurs when nerve cells detect damage and transmit signals to the brain for interpretation. Everyone feels pain differently, which makes it challenging for doctors to define and treat. A new study, using brain scans, has found that gamma oscillations — brain waves linked to pain perception — have different timing, frequency, and location in different people. This finding could ...
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  • Best Life Quotes Dr. Williams: 6 Signs You Aren't Drinking Enough Water

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 8-Jun-2023

    Drinking plenty of water is essential to your health : It helps your organs perform their vital functions, regulates your body temperature, lubricates your joints, and helps rid your body of waste, among other things. And with so many important functions hanging in the balance, it doesn't take long for problems to arise when you're inadequately hydrated, experts say. "Dehydration is ...
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  • Defining the "Right" Treatment for Migraine Headaches

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 5-Jun-2023

    As a neurologist who has cared for many patients experiencing migraines and chronic headaches, I can confidently state that rarely are two patients’ experiences the same. What one person may find debilitating, another may experience as only a nuisance. Some people can maintain a high quality of life with specific headache symptoms, while others may be unable to work or live well while ...
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  • Whatever age you are, the best time to start prioritizing your health is now. However, certain health habits are especially beneficial as you reach your 50s, before the health consequences of not doing so set in. Adopting a few simple interventions could be the key to health and longevity, doctors say, helping to stave off disease, preserve cognitive function, improve your quality of life, and ...
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  • Migraine affects more than 1 billion people globally every year. There is currently no cure for migraine headaches, which can have a major impact on a person’s quality of life. Researchers from Vall d’Hebron University Hospital in Spain recently presented research showing the drug atogepant helps prevent headaches in people with episodic migraine who have had no success with other ...
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  • Health Disparities in Traumatic Brain Injury

    Posted By Vernon B. Williams, MD || 24-Apr-2023

    Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious public health problem that can significantly impact a person's quality of life, the healthcare system, and society as a whole. Health disparities in TBI refer to the unequal distribution of TBI-related morbidity (the state of having a specific illness) and mortality (the number of deaths due to a particular disease) across different populations. These ...
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