NPR

When a brain injury impairs memory, a pulse of electricity may help

A severe traumatic brain injury can make it hard to remember recent events or conversations. But a form of brain stimulation appears to ease this memory deficit.
A precisely timed pulse to a brain area just behind the ear can help reduce memory deficits in patients suffering moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries.

If you've ever had trouble finding your keys or remembering what you had for breakfast, you know that short-term memory is far from perfect.

For people who've had a traumatic brain injury (TBI), though, recalling recent events or conversations can be a major struggle.

"We have patients whose family cannot leave them alone at home because they will turn on the stove and forget to turn it off," says Dr. Ramon Diaz-Arrastia, who directs the Traumatic Brain Injury Clinical Research Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

So Arrastia and a team of scientists have been testing

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