Traumatic Brain Injury Case and Effect

The Centers for Disease Control calls head injuries a “serious public health problem.”

1.7 million Americans have been diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Some symptoms may become apparent in as little as 24 hours, while other symptoms may not appear for weeks or even months. Sometimes, even attentive loved ones are dismissive of the initial TBI signs. Mood changes and anger are attributed to “a bad day.” A busy schedule and the natural aging process are blamed for memory problems. But TBI effects do not stop with irritability and nuisance. TBI patients often develop a prolonged sense of hopelessness, followed by serious depression and perhaps even suicide.

TBI Causes

Researchers believe that most TBIs in Boston are caused either by a blow to the head or by a deep, penetrating wound. The brain is so sensitive that there does not have to be very much force at all to cause a brain injury.

• A penetrating wound may be more than a violent and random gun or knife attack. A person may be shot in a hunting accident and appear to recover. Only later do the doctors detect brain damage that may have initially been overlooked. Trepanation, or drilling a hole in the head as a surgical procedure, is extremely rare in the United States but is practiced much more frequently in other parts of the world.
• A blow to the head does not necessarily require any violent physical contact. Smaller, repetitive blows may also cause a TBI. Other times, a shock wave from a bomb blast can cause the same effect. Such occurrences have been observed in Afghanistan, Iraq and Gulf War veterans, and may apply in other instances as well, such as construction workers who use dynamite to demolish buildings.

To learn more about TBIs and their costs, visit our website or call me.