Clinical benefits of Cerebrolysin treatment in the real world – remarkable recovery after TBI

Dr. Li focused his presentation on clinical benefits of Cerebrolysin for TBI patients in real-world practice. Traditional treatments, including prior neuroprotective agents like progesterone, have largely failed. Therefore, he highlighted the need for interventions, bridging acute care and long-term recovery.

He explained that TBI causes both primary injuries (e.g., hemorrhage, diffuse axonal injury) and secondary injuries, including oxidative stress, excitotoxicity, neuroinflammation, apoptosis, and long-term complications like hydrocephalus and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. While moderate neuroinflammation supports repair, excessive inflammation worsens outcomes, emphasizing the importance of restoring homeostasis.

Dr. Li presented two cases demonstrating substantial recovery after Cerebrolysin treatment combined with rehabilitation, illustrating improvements in independence and return to work.

Case 1
A 71-year-old female pedestrian injured by a motorcycle, with an initial GCS 3 (E1V1M1) and a dilated right pupil. After right craniectomy and two cycles of Cerebrolysin (30 ml/day for 21 days each), she showed substantial functional recovery five months post-injury, with reduced care burden for her family despite some residual cognitive deficits.

Case 2
A 46-year-old male motorcycle accident patient, initial GCS 6 (E1V1M4), right pupil dilation, treated with right craniotomy and two cycles of Cerebrolysin. 10 months later, he had returned to work as a chef with good hand function, although mild personality changes were reported by his family.

In conclusion, TBI imposes a significant socioeconomic burden, and Cerebrolysin offers a multi-target strategy bridging acute lifesaving interventions and long-term recovery. Clinical results show positive effects on early recovery, functional and cognitive outcomes, mortality, and depression in moderate-to-severe TBI patients. Retrospective data collection is ongoing, but current results indicate a reduction in mortality of approximately 50%, consistent with CAPTAIN trial findings. Improvements in GCS scores were also observed.