Unlocking the brain’s healing potential 

Duke is a key player in a large research initiative to improve the diagnosis, classification, and treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI) by collecting and analyzing extensive, standardized data from thousands of patients across the United States.

“We know the blood-brain barrier opens up for a period of time after trauma, which may impede the patient’s healing process. My team is working on ways to restore the blood-brain barrier integrity that may improve neurological function and lower a patient’s vulnerability to future concussions.”

Gerald Grant, MD

TRACK-TBI

Duke is the newest member of TRACK-TBI (Transforming Research and Clinical Knowledge in TBI), which integrates clinical information, advanced imaging, blood biomarkers, and outcomes data to build a comprehensive understanding of how TBI affects the brain and recovery over time. By linking these datasets with biorepositories and long-term follow-up, TRACK-TBI provides the foundation for precision medicine approaches in brain injury care.

Its focus on neurorestoration comes from this goal: moving beyond just stabilizing patients after injury, to actively promoting recovery of brain function and quality of life. TRACK-TBI studies the mechanisms of neural repair and plasticity, identifies biological and clinical predictors of recovery, and evaluates new therapies and rehabilitation strategies. The insights generated aim to guide personalized treatment, improve patient outcomes, and accelerate the development of interventions that restore memory, cognition, mobility, and emotional well-being after TBI.