The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center is one of only 16 Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Model Systems in the country for research on treatment of patients who experience TBI. Since 1987, we have studied the lifelong effects of severe TBI and played a pivotal role in improving care standards and treatments for TBI patients.

Founded in 1992 at Ohio State, the Ohio Valley Center for Brain Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation has developed research and community education efforts that have resulted in better assessment and treatment of the TBI patient population. Substance abuse treatment is a key area of our research focus, along with treating agitation and irritability and measuring long-term outcomes from brain injury.

Almost half of brain injury patients have substance abuse issues and Ohio State is well known for our research in this area. Substance abuse treatment information developed for TBI patients at Ohio State is used by healthcare professionals, individuals and families all over the country.

Ohio State researchers have developed assessment techniques widely used in the field including the Agitated Behavior Scale and OSU TBI-Identification Method (OSU TBI-ID).

Ohio State’s TBI Program includes leading contributors to the field.

Traumatic Brain Injury Research Leaders

Our leaders

Jennifer Bogner, PhD

Co-Principal Investigator, Ohio Regional TBI Model System

Dr. Bogner is the co-principal investigator of the Ohio Regional TBI Model System, a study that follows individuals for many years after their injury to find out what factors determine the best outcomes. One of Dr. Bogner’s areas of research is the study of factors that are associated with long-term outcomes following traumatic brain injury. She is also interested in the study of substance use disorders after brain injury.

John Corrigan, PhD

Director of the Ohio Valley Center for Brain Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation

Dr. Corrigan is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the American Psychological Association. He served on the Advisory Committee to the National Center on Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He is a former member of the board of directors of the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and the Brain Injury Association of America.

W. Jerry Mysiw, MD

Medical Director, Traumatic Brain Injury Program

Dr Mysiw is the Chair of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and the Bert C. Wiley Chair and associate professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation. He is also the medical director of Rehabilitation Services, and the medical director for the NeuroRecovery Network at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. In addition to his clinical interests in the rehabilitation of people with traumatic brain injury, Dr. Mysiw’s research has focused on improving outcome after traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injury.

Interventional Studies

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center lead and collaborate with other institutions on intervention studies to advance the care and outcomes for TBI patients. Outlined below are intervention studies that our researchers are currently involved with:

TBI and Substance Abuse

Making substance abuse services more accessible to and effective for persons with TBI has been the focus of more than a decade of research by investigators in Ohio State’s Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Research focused on substance abuse has been guided by the 4-Quadrant Model, which identifies opportunities for treatment in various healthcare venues depending on the severity of the individual’s TBI and substance abuse issues. New interventions have been developed as a result of the research and continue to be explored with new projects. Learn more about TBI and substance abuse

Gaming in Rehabilitation

Play time is not just for kids anymore. More adults are recognizing the benefits of taking “game breaks” to relieve stress or to just have fun. Games can potentially serve an important role in improving function and well-being in persons who have sustained injuries or experienced illnesses leading to disability. Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center is currently planning intervention studies to examine the feasibility and utility of using electronic rehabilitation games to improve coping and functioning in persons who have sustained a concussion (mild to moderate traumatic brain injury) with lasting effects. We hope that the initial studies will help to refine the gaming approach for use with other rehabilitation patients.
Longitudinal Studies

Researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center have been studying traumatic brain injury (TBI) and contributing to the field for more than two decades. Our collaboration with other leading TBI researchers has led to better care and outcomes for patients with traumatic brain injury.

The Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems

Ohio State’s Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Program is one of only 16 model systems for traumatic brain injury in the United States. This research program is the largest longitudinal study in the world examining the lifelong effects of severe TBI. Funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, the TBI Model Systems Program has been helping TBI patients, their families and their communities since 1987.

TBI Model Systems Collaborative Research Grant on Practice-Based Evidence

This research project is studying individual differences in demographic characteristics, injury-related conditions and medical treatment that predict the effectiveness of rehabilitation treatment on a patient’s functional independence, participation and well-being up to one year after traumatic brain injury.

Traumatic Brain Injury Research

A national leader in brain injury research.