How RAPID-TBI works
Two connected streams make up our program.
Device stream
Coordinated by Dr Bao Nguyen, our interdisciplinary team across the Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, and Engineering and IT Faculties is developing a handheld device to assess the risk of raised brain pressure at the point of injury. This device could be a screening tool to reduce the need for invasive procedures currently used to measure brain pressure, and help fast-track treatment and management decisions for a traumatic brain injury.
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Therapeutic stream
Led by Professor Peter Crack, the therapeutic stream is developing a novel brain-penetrant medicine to rapidly treat neuroinflammation. Left unchecked, inflammation after a head injury worsens trauma; this treatment limits the long-term damage of a traumatic brain injury.
Learn moreWhy this matters
A fall at home, a tackle on the sports field, an accident on the road – traumatic brain injuries can happen at any age in a heartbeat. Every year, 27 million people worldwide fall victim to a traumatic brain injury. If caught too late, they can lead to lasting damage and affect a person's quality of life. Today, measuring brain pressure, the primary indicator of danger, requires invasive procedures. Doctors must drill into the skull or spine just to see what's happening. But not every head injury ends up in a hospital. Some may not think an injury is severe enough to warrant seeking medical attention. For those in remote areas, the distance to a hospital is often too far. By the time they reach a specialist, the window for recovery has closed, leaving them with a lifetime of complications that could have been avoided.
What we're changing
The RAPID-TBI program is a two-part platform that provides both an immediate risk assessment and an early defence against lasting brain damage.
Our handheld brain pressure measuring device, is a non-invasive way to check for dangerous brain pressure. This device can be operated by a coach at a sporting club, a first responder, or a person with first-aid training.
The therapeutic is a rapid-response medicine that targets inflammation in the brain; it reduces the impact of the response, meaning the likelihood of developing a severe traumatic brain injury is diminished
Through early-risk assessment and the dampening of harmful neuroinflammation, we can prevent long-term disability and save lives.
Our experts
Professor Peter Crack
Professor Peter Crack is the head of the Neuropharmacology research group in the Department of Biochemistry and Pharmacology, and oversees the therapeutics stream within the RAPID-TBI program at the University of Melbourne.
Dr Bao Nguyen
Dr Bao Nguyen is a senior research fellow in the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences, and oversees the device stream within the RAPID-TBI program at the University of Melbourne.
Professor Vera Ignjatovic AM
Professor Vera Ignjatovic AM is the Founder and Managing Director of Ignis Innovations and leads the collection and analysis of physiological and pathological biomarkers for traumatic brain injury across device and therapeutic streams of RAPID-TBI, driving the translational pipeline from sample collection to clinical application in traumatic brain injury.