PhD defence: Charlotte Nygaard
New PhD Thesis Focuses on Post-Traumatic Headache and New Treatment Approaches
Info about event
Time
Location
Multisalen, Hammel Neurocenter
On Monday 16 November at 13:00, Charlotte Nygaard defends her PhD dissertation entitled “Post-traumatic headache: Phenotyping, pathophysiological insights and novel treatment strategies”.
Headache following concussion, also known as post-traumatic headache, is among the most common persistent symptoms after concussion. Despite the widespread nature of the condition, effective treatment options remain limited.
Physician and PhD student Charlotte Nygaard from Hammel Neurocenter and Aarhus University will defend her PhD thesis, presenting the results of several years of research into post-traumatic headache. The thesis comprises three clinical studies investigating the characteristics of the condition, potential biological mechanisms, and novel treatment strategies for patients with persistent headache following concussion.
New Insights into a Complex Headache Disorder
One of the studies showed that patients with persistent post-traumatic headache often present with a headache pattern resembling migraine. Many patients reported frequent headache days, a substantial disease burden, and limited benefit from both pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments.
A central part of the PhD thesis is a randomized clinical trial investigating the effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) compared with sham stimulation in patients with post-traumatic headache. rTMS is a non-invasive form of brain stimulation that uses magnetic pulses to influence brain activity and has previously shown promising results in conditions such as migraine. The study is among the largest controlled studies of rTMS in post-traumatic headache to date and contributes important new knowledge to a field where evidence remains limited.
The thesis also includes studies of blood-based biomarkers that may contribute to a better understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying post-traumatic headache.
“Post-traumatic headache remains a research area with many unanswered questions. I hope this thesis will contribute to a better understanding of the condition and provide a foundation for future studies exploring both disease mechanisms and new treatment strategies,” says Charlotte Nygaard.
The summary is written by the PhD student.
The defence is public and takes place in Multisalen, Hammel Neurocenter. Please see the press release for more information.
Contact
PhD student Charlotte Nygaard
Mail: chnyga@rm.dk
Phone +45 42428145