What is Traumatic Brain Injury, or TBI?
What does TBI look like?
“Symptoms of a TBI can be mild, moderate, or severe, depending on the extent of the damage to the brain. A person with a mild TBI may remain conscious… Other symptoms of mild TBI include headache, confusion, lightheadedness, dizziness, blurred vision or tired eyes, ringing in the ears, … behavioral or mood changes, and trouble with memory, concentration, attention, or thinking. A person with a moderate or severe TBI may … also have a headache that gets worse or does not go away, repeated vomiting or nausea, convulsions or seizures, an inability to awaken from sleep, dilation of one or both pupils of the eyes, slurred speech, weakness or numbness in the extremities, loss of coordination, and increased confusion, restlessness, or agitation.” (1)
TBI Hospitalizations
“There were approximately 223,135 TBI-related hospitalizations in 2019* and 64,362 TBI-related deaths in 2020. … This represents more than 611 TBI-related hospitalizations and 176 TBI-related deaths per day.” (2)
TBI in Children:
"TBI affects children differently than adults. An injury of any severity to the developing brain may: Disrupt a child’s development [;] Limit their ability to participate in school and other activities, like sports." (3)
Video on TBI by the CDC (4)
Sources:
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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Traumatic brain injury information page. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Retrieved April 26, 2022, from https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/All-Disorders/Traumatic-Brain-Injury-Information-Page
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, March 21). TBI data. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 26, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury/data/index.html
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, March 21). Get the facts about TBI. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 26, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury/get_the_facts.html