Background: Discovery of neurotrophic factors--emblematic: the nerve growth factor (NGF)--resulted in better approaching central nervous system (CNS) lesions. Recently, another crucial property has been unveiled: their rather unique pleiotropic effect. Cerebrolysin is a peptide mixture that penetrates the blood-brain barrier in significant amounts and mimics the effects of NGF.
Methods: Comparative analysis: Cerebrolysin treated (10 ml x 2/day, i.v. x 3 weeks) vs. non-treated, in patients (all received aside, a rather equivalent complementary, pharmacological and physical, therapy). Two lots of patients, admitted in our Physical & Rehabilitation (neural-muscular) Medical-PR(n-m)M-Clinic Division, during 2007-2009: 69 treated with Cerebrolysin (22 F, 47 M; Average: 59.333; Mean of age: 61.0 Years old; Standard deviation 16.583) and 70 controls (41 F, 29 M; A: 70.014; M.o.a.: 70.5 Y.o.; S.d.: 6.270) were studied. The total number of assessed items was 13: most contributive in relation with the score of Functional Independence Measure at discharge (d FIM), were: admission (a FIM), number of physical therapy days (PT), number of hospitalization days (H), age (A) and--relatively--days until the first knee functional extension (KE). Concomitantly, the main/key, focused on neuro-motor rehabilitative outcomes, functional/analytical parameters, have been assessed regarding the speed in achieving their functional recovery.
Results: Concerning d FIM, there have not been objectified significant differences between the two lots (p=0.2453) but regarding key, focused on neuro-motor rehabilitative outcomes, functional/analytical parameters: KE (p=0.0007) and days until the first time recovery of the ability to walk between parallel bars (WPB--p=0.0000)--highly significant differences in favor of Cerebrolysin lot resulted.
Conclusion: Cerebrolysin administration, as neurorehabilitative outcomes, proved to hasten, statistically significant, especially the recovery of some critical, for standing and walking, parameters. Thus encouraged, we have now initiated a comprehensive national, 5 year retrospective, multi-centre--based on unitary data acquisition frame and mathematical apparatus--study, to evaluate the results of the treatment with Cerebrolysin in traumatic brain injuries (TBI).