Head Injury/Traumatic Brain Injury
A hard impact or jolt to the head or body normally causes traumatic brain injury. Traumatic brain injury may also be caused by an object that penetrates brain tissue, such as a bullet or a shattered piece of skull. A mild traumatic brain injury can cause temporary damage to your brain cells. Bruising, broken tissues, bleeding, and other physical damage to the brain may occur with more severe traumatic brain injury. Long-term complications or death may occur as a result of these injuries.
TBI is characterized as a blow to the head or a penetrating head injury that causes the brain’s normal function to be disrupted. When the head collides with an object unexpectedly and violently, or when an object pierces the skull and enters brain tissue, TBI may occur. TBI symptoms can be mild, moderate, or extreme, depending on the degree of brain injury.
Symptoms
TBI may have a wide range of physical and psychological consequences. Some signs or symptoms may occur right after a traumatic incident, while others may take days or weeks to appear.
Causes
A blow to the head or other traumatic damage to the body is the most common cause of traumatic brain injury. The severity of the damage is determined by a number of factors, including the type of injury and the force of impact.
The following are examples of common incidents that result in traumatic brain injury:
- 1) Falls: Falls from a bed or a ladder, down stairs, in the bath, and other falls are the leading cause of traumatic brain injury in adults and children.
- 2) Vehicle-related crashes: collisions involving automobiles, motorcycles, or bicycles, as well as pedestrians.
- 3) Violence: Common causes include gunshot wounds, domestic violence, child abuse, and other assaults. Shaken baby syndrome is a form of traumatic brain injury induced by severe shaking in babies.
- 4) Sports injuries: Injuries from a variety of sports, including soccer, boxing, football, baseball, lacrosse, skateboarding, hockey, and other high-impact or extreme sports, can result in traumatic brain injuries.