Improved treatment for victims of brain injuries is the goal behind a new study funded at $4.3 million by the National Institutes of Health. The five-year study will collect information from more than 2,300 patients who have moderate to severe head injuries, typically suffered when the head violently strikes an object or when a sharp objects pierces the skull.

Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, which treats 50 to 75 patients with traumatic brain injury each year, is one of 11 healthcare facilities in the U.S. to participate in the study. The study is considered the largest and most important study ever conducted on brain injury, according to experts, because it will enable health care professionals to identify the best treatments for a full range of symptoms.