| Summary: | Emerging research on the long-term impact of concussions on athletes has allowed public recognition of the
potentially devastating effects of these and other mild head injuries. Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is a
multifaceted disease for which management remains a clinical challenge. Recent pre-clinical and clinical data
strongly suggest a destructive synergism between brain temperature elevation and mTBI; conversely, brain
hypothermia, with its broader, pleiotropic effects, represents the most potent neuro-protectant in laboratory
studies to date. Although well-established in selected clinical conditions, a systemic approach to accomplish
regional hypothermia has failed to yield an effective treatment strategy in traumatic brain injury (TBI).
Furthermore, although systemic hypothermia remains a potentially valid treatment strategy for moderate to
severe TBIs, it is neither practical nor safe for mTBIs. Therefore, selective head-neck cooling may represent an
ideal strategy to provide therapeutic benefits to the brain. Optimizing brain temperature management using a
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) spacesuit spinoff head-neck cooling technology before
and/or after mTBI in contact sports may represent a sensible, practical, and effective method to potentially
enhance recover and minimize post-injury deficits. In this paper, we discuss and summarize the anatomical,
physiological, preclinical, and clinical data concerning NASA spinoff head-neck cooling technology as a potential
treatment for mTBIs, particularly in the context of contact sports.
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