Huntington Medical Research Institutes Hosts 2nd Annual Brain Awareness Day
Huntington Medical Research Institutes (HMRI), Pasadena’s only dedicated medical research institute, will host its 2nd Annual Brain Awareness Day event on Saturday, April 30, 2016 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. The event is being hosted at the McKinley Elementary School Auditorium located at 325 S. Oak Knoll Avenue, Pasadena.
This year, HMRI’s Brain Awareness Day, a free event open to the public, is focused on traumatic brain injury, especially in younger people. The program will start with an overview of the work on mild traumatic brain injury going on at HMRI, and a description of the known risk factors for traumatic brain injury and its link to later dementias. A panel of experts will use the FRONTLINE documentary League of Denial : The NFL’s Concussion Crisis as a point of reference for the public’s understanding of traumatic brain injury.
The documentary starts with the work of Dr. Bennet Omalu who is now being profiled in theaters internationally in the popular movie Concussion. Attendees are encouraged to ask questions about the film, as well as about traumatic brain injury generally, and about the work going on at HMRI to understand the consequences of even mild injuries to the brain.
“Brain Awareness Day is a great opportunity for HMRI physicians and scientists to remind our friends in the community that our brains are vulnerable and need protection—at all stages of life,” said Dr. Marie Csete, President & Chief Scientist of HMRI. “We are eager to use this special day to bring attention to the knowns and unknowns of traumatic brain injury, and how HMRI scientists are peering into the brain with advanced imaging and molecular tools to understand the basis of brain disease that follows trauma. Traumatic brain injury is especially common in young people which is why our focus is on pediatric injury this year. ”
Panelists for the event include: Moderator, Marie Csete MD, PhD, Michael Harrington, MB, ChB, FRCP, Director of Neurosciences, HMRI; Manuel Buitrago Blanco, MD, PhD, Department of Neurosurgery, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center; Andrea Letamendi, PhD, Clinical Psychologist, Hathaway-Sycamores; and Brandon Lew, DO, Huntington Memorial Hospital Emergency Medicine Group.
Eligible Pasadena public school student athletes will be able to enroll in HMRI’s traumatic brain injury monitoring program and obtain appointments for complimentary brain imaging scans.
Exhibitors will include the Brain Injury Association of California, University of Southern California and others.
“We will only understand treatment when we understand how these diseases start and progress,” adds Dr. Csete. “We invite you to come and enrich your brains at McKinley Elementary School on Brain Day.”
About Huntington Medical Research Institutes
Huntington Medical Research Institutes (HMRI) is a tax-exempt 501(c) (3) nonprofit, public-benefit organization based in Pasadena, California, dedicated to changing lives through multidisciplinary patient-focused research. Since its beginnings in 1952, HMRI research has led to development of diagnostics and medical devices that impact many patients worldwide. HMRI is Pasadena’s only dedicated medical research institute, with robust research programs focused on diseases of the brain, heart, liver, and gut. With more than 47,000 square feet of research space, HMRI’s physician-scientists bring deep clinical experience into the laboratories to inform basic research and clinical studies including active clinical studies in neurodegenerative disease, hepatitis, and heart failure. For more information, visit www.hmri.org.
