A new method might allow positron emission tomography (PET) scans to accurately diagnose traumatic brain injuries and concussions, according to initial findings recently announced by University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers.The advance has significance because standard CT or MRI scans are unable to see most changes caused to the brain by such injuries, which can take place at the cellular or even molecular level. Brain damage dangers have become a serious issue in the National Football League and other professional sports in recent years -- not to mention the U.S. armed forces. Backed by funding from the U.S. military's Defense Health Program, the University of Virginia researchers attached a compound similar to the radioactive tracers used to identify lung infections to the surface of neutrophils, a white blood cell that is part of the immune response to an injury.When TBI occurs, neutrophils target the injured area of the brain. With the tracer-like compound attached, it is possible to observe over PET scan as the neutrophils target the injured area of the brain. The white blood cells pass through blood vessels that access cerebral spinal fluid."It's like a Trojan horse kind of approach," James Stone, MD, a University of Virginia radiologist and neuroscientist says in a news release. "Neutrophils identify early inflammation in TBI, which could one day allow researchers to identify patients that might benefit from therapies targeting TBI-related inflammation," Stone says. Stone and radiology researchers Stuart Berr, Jiang He, and Dongfeng Pan presented their initial findings at the recent Military Health System Research Symposium. They are planning additional tests to ensure the safety of the compound, followed by clinical trials to examine the effectiveness of the technique for diagnosing TBI.