Legendary Brett Favre endorses a New Treatment for Concussions; Part One of a special series

HATTIESBURG, MISS. – A Florida doctor believes made a new discovery and found a treatment for concussions. Recently, NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre endorsed the new product called Prevacus, which begins its first phase of human trials in January 2019. “Concussions happen in all phases of life and there needs to some kind of treatment,” Favre stated. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 1.6 to 3.8 million sports-related concussions occur in the United States every year, and many of these concussions go untreated. However, a Florida doctor believes he found a possible cure. “We are developing the first drug to treat concussions,” a neuroscientist from Florida, Dr. Jacob Vanlandingham said. “It’s a solution that can be given on the sidelines, immediately within ten minutes of the brain injury.” Dr. Vanlandingham, the Founder and President of Prevacus started researching a cure for concussions after a fatal encounter with a stranger. “In 1995, August of that year, I was moving my brother down to the University of Florida to start Medical School,” Dr. Vanlandingham said. “We were out for dinner and when we left out of the restaurant I was assaulted. There was a vagrant outside and he blindsided me.” The blow knocked Dr. Vanlandingham unconscious causing his body to drop and his head to bounce off of a nearby curb. Unconscious and concussed no one knew the serious extent of Dr. Vanlandingham’s injuries. “The emergency group did not even give me a scan that night,” Dr. Vanlandingham mentioned. “They thought I had just a concussion.” However the following day, Dr. Vanlandingham received a second diagnosis from the hospital after a family member noticed a distinct slur in his speech. “They found I had three hemorrhages in my brain, and I was a couple of hours away from death,” Dr. Vanlandingham said. “Luckily for me, I was given a drug that was in clinical trials.” Dr. Vanlandingham gives the drug credit for saving his life, and as a result of his close encounter with death, Dr. Vanlandingham began researching a cure for concussions. Now years later, he believes he found the cure. “The drug works three ways by reducing inflammation, reducing oxidative stress, and reducing the swelling that happens on the brain,” Dr. Vanlandingham said. Prevacus enters the body through the nose and makes its way up to the brain in less than five minutes. The person taking the treatment puts one end of the applicator in their mouth, and the other end of the application in their nose. Once both ends are correctly in place, the person then blows from their mouth into their nose. The blow closes off the soft pallet, preventing the person from swallowing and breathing the drug into their body, and ultimately trapping the drug in the nasal cavity. “Your old factory neurons from your nasal cavity will defuse up into your brain,” Dr. Vanlandingham explained. “It’s all getting into your brain, so you are able to use less of the drug to get better effects.” Recently, Prevacus received a new supporter in Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre. “It’s not just the treatment itself, it’s the fact that the treatment would work,” Favre stated. “Then I think over time we would look at concussions, and they would be treatable.” Supporters of Prevacus hope the FDA will be looking at the drug in the next couple of years.