Jacob Powell, PhD

Our latest publication now out - Glad to contribute to our understanding of the brain health risks sustain by Special Warfare Combat Crewmen (SWCC)

Predicting which traumatic brain injury patients will meaningfully improve during treatment remains a major challenge in military medicine. In a new study, researchers evaluated whether machine learning models could forecast clinically significant improvement among 790 active-duty service members completing a four-week interdisciplinary Intensive Outpatient Program at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence. They compared XGBoost models built from demographic data, total symptom scores, and symptom-cluster scores to identify which factors best predicted improvement in posttraumatic stress and post-concussion symptoms. Notable results include: 🔹 Symptom-cluster models outperformed total-score models (area under the curve 79% vs. 75%; accuracy 72% vs. 68%). 🔹 The strongest predictors were PTSD arousal, avoidance, and reexperiencing sub-scores, followed by education level and cognitive post-concussion symptoms. This work highlights how targeted machine learning tools could help clinicians anticipate outcomes and allocate treatment resources more effectively. 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲: link.springer.com/article/10.100… 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆: Prediction of Clinically Significant Improvements During the Interdisciplinary Intensive Outpatient Program for Traumatic Brain Injury Using Machine Learning 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀: Rujirutana Srikanchana, @JakeRPowell, Jacob Powell, Treven Pickett, Thomas DeGraba, and Chandler Sours Rhodes @WRNMMC_DHA @USUhealthsci @UofMaryland @UMmedschool 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝗺𝗶𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁: link.springer.com/journal/10439

New Research: Olfactory dysfunction with traumatic brain injury and posttraumatic-stress symptoms in post-deployed military personnel frontiersin.org/articles/10.33… #FrontiersIn #Neurology

We are recruiting for a PhD student in @psiunc to start at UNC-Chapel Hill in Fall 2026. The PhD student will assist with NIH and other externally funded projects. Please share with your networks and retweet. :)

Live, laugh, lean mass 💪 our recent paper is online now!! Findings: ⬇️% lean mass + ⬆️ % fat mass is associated with worse clinical outcomes post-ACLR. @SamMooreStrong @asmithryan @HopeDavis06 @BlackburnTroy @BPietrosimone @MOTION_UNC @UNCTARC @UNC_SMI journals.lww.com/acsm-msse/abst…

@AaronSinnottATC @UConcussion Congrats Aaron!

Looking forward to embarking on a collaborative study with @UConcussion to better understand the effects of head impact burden (with and without concussion incidence) on physiological functioning after exercise. Many thanks to the Provost's office for supporting this work.

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Career Stage Associate with Visible Perivascular Spaces in Special Operations Forces Soldiers @jmihalik79 @GfellerCenter @UNCEXSS @UNC_HMSC @JakeRPowell @UNCpublichealth @genevaUSA @uncfammed @USASOCNews @BMESociety Link: rdcu.be/dXhGG

🌟 National Concussion Awareness Day! 🌟 Congrats to our Research Grant awardee Allyssa Memmini. Her research on post-concussion return-to-learn management for Hispanic collegiate student-athletes will make a huge impact. Proud to support innovative work in athletic training!

I am accepting applications for a new Ph.D. student w/ a fall 2025 start. If you are interested in completing your Ph.D. in @UVAKinesiology w/ an emphasis on #sport #related #concussion please do not hesitate to contact me.

Are you an AT at a High School? Get involved with Datalys High School RIO and earn an incentive and CEUs. Data are used to reduce the risk of injury and keep high school athletes in the game. More information: surveymonkey.com/r/highschoolri… or highschoolrio@datalyscenter.org

If you’re at #MHSRS today, come see three of our Co-Directors present posters this afternoon in the session on ‘Women’s Health and Readiness: Health Focused Updates’ (See thread for more details) @afdlempke @lblempke @SammoWalton @VCUresearch @iwhvcu @VCUHealth @limbic_cenc

💡Recent studies suggest that dysfunction in the glymphatic system, responsible for clearing protein waste from the brain, may play a pivotal role in the development of dementia following #TBI. 🏁Key findings of this paper include: 1) White matter ePVS burden (WM-ePVS) and ALPS index exhibit significant correlations with age. 2) Elevated WM-ePVS burden in acute mTBI (14 days) is significantly linked to a higher number of post-#concussion symptoms, particularly memory problems. 3) The increase in the ALPS index from acute (14Day) to the chronic (6-12 Months) phases in #mTBI patients correlates with improvement in sleep measures. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38854000/

In the new issue, Brittany Ingram, MA, LAT, ATC and colleagues use the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Framework and describe how it can address gaps in our understanding of social determinants of health. Article: tinyurl.com/3x2789r5

@AlexNilius Congrats!

In a recent journal publication, PhD candidate @aboltzster, Center Director Dr. Steven Broglio, & experts, describe mechanisms of injury leading to #concussions in collegiate soccer players. 🧠⚽️ Access here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.11…

@avinashsc Well deserved Dr. Chandran!

Honored to be a part of this distinguished group in my space!

We are trying to examine the potential impact of state regulatory language on ATs ability to provide emergency care to patients. If you are currently employed as an AT *IN ANY SETTING* please take our survey! uconn.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8b…

Online First - Brittany Ingram, MA, ATC and colleagues use the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Framework to address gaps in understanding of social determinants of health and sport-related concussion.

New Year; New Us! 🎉 We're excited to start 2⃣0⃣2⃣4⃣ with our new research group! Looking forward to making an impact on health and well-being for athletes and military service members for years to come! 🧠🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🪖 @jroldham @SammoWalton @lblempke @afdlempke @VCUresearch

We're hiring at @DatalysCenter ! Seeking an Assistant Director for the NCAA Injury Surveillance Program. Role involves data management, project communication, and more. Reach out for more details! linkedin.com/posts/avinash-…