Traumatic Brain Injuries

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Traumatic Brain Injuries

• Jill Bryant, Julianette Casanova, Emily Heckman,
  Robin Koogle, and Deanna Scott

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Definition TBI

• TBI is a complex injury with a broad spectrum of
  symptoms and disabilities. It occurs when a
  sudden trauma causes damage to the brain. TBI can
  result when the head suddenly and violently hits
  an object, or when an object pierces the skull
  and enters the brain tissue.

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Prevalence

• The estimated incidence of traumatic brain injury
  doubles between the ages of 5 and 14 years old,
  and increases for both males and females during
  adolescence and early adulthood. 1.4 million
  people sustain a TBI each year in the United
  States. By the numbers, every American has a
  1300 chance of sustaining a traumatic brain
  injury each year. An estimated 5.3 million
  Americansabout 2 of the U.S populationcurrently
  have a long-term or life-long need for help with
  everyday activities dues to traumatic brain
  injuries.

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Causes of TBI
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Major Characteristics

• Physical Impairments speech, vision, hearing and
  other sensory impairment, headaches, lack of fine
  motor coordination, spasticity of muscles,
  paresis or paralysis of one or both sides and
  seizure disorders, and balance.
• Cognitive Impairments short- and long-term
  memory loss, impaired concentration, limited
  attention span, as well as impairments of
  perception, communication, reading and writing
  skills, planning sequencing, and judgment.
• Psychosocial-behavioral-emotional impairments
  fatigue, mood swings, denial, self-centeredness,
  anxiety, depression, lowered self-esteem, sexual
  dysfunction, restlessness, lack of motivation,
  difficulty with emotional control, inability to
  cope, agitation, excessive laughing or crying,
  and difficulty relating to others.

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Major Characteristics

• Academic Implications
• Difficulty with logic, thinking and reasoning
• Slower to respond, react and complete activities
  and tasks
• Difficulty focusing attention
• Physical limitations
• Inappropriate social behaviors
• Difficulty remembering
• Frequently puzzled or challenged by grade level
  work
• Difficulty learning

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Developmental Implications

• It is important for educators to note the social,
  emotional, physical, and cognitive problems that
  are caused by traumatic brain injuries.
• Traumatic brain injuries affect the whole person,
  since it occurs in the brain, where all functions
  develop.
• Every case of traumatic brain injury is
  completely different, affecting the person
  physically, emotionally, socially, cognitively,
  or at all.

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Developmental Implications

• Emotional Relearning the tasks of everyday
  living can be very frustrating for traumatic
  brain injury survivors. Mild emotional
  development issues include lack of motivation,
  anger, and disappointment. Recovery is possible,
  but living with a traumatic brain injury requires
  patience and commitment. This can be difficult
  because the person in recovery is often very
  different as a result of their injury. If a
  person can accept their disability, their
  emotional difficulties can be reduced, but it is
  important for sufferers to keep pursuing
  treatment and activities to improve their
  condition.

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Developmental Implications

• Social Many mild TBI sufferers have trouble
  interpreting the actions of other people, which
  causes great stress in social situations. Also,
  the cognitive impairments that often come with a
  traumatic brain injury are hard for others in
  social settings to understand. Since many TBI
  sufferers dont have extremely obvious
  impairments, people dont sympathize with them
  when they have trouble in social settings.
  Trouble with communication is a huge obstacle for
  those with brain injuries. In severe cases, the
  TBI sufferer may not even be aware of their
  social surroundings and are unresponsive to
  actions that normally stimulate the brain.

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Developmental Implications

• Cognitive Cognitive and communication issues
  stemming from traumatic brain injuries range from
  person to person. Mild cognitive issues include
• trouble organizing
• keeping track of the date
• forgetfulness
• difficulty learning
• and trouble intellectually applying skills that
  used to be familiar.
• Severe issues include loss of responsiveness to
  any noise, smell, or feeling that would normally
  stimulate the senses. This usually occurs when
  swelling causes pressure in the brain stem, which
  controls consciousness. The assessment of
  cognitive issues for each patient requires
  ongoing care by a number of professionals.

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Developmental Implications

•  Physical The most common problems people with
  TBI have are problems with thinking and managing
  emotions. Many traumatic brain injuries result
  from accidents, so rehabilitation is often an
  initial physical obstacle to overcome.
• More severe head injuries can result in physical
  impairments that can last a lifetime.
• A person with a mild to severe brain injury can
  have symptoms that include dizziness, constant
  headache, vomiting and lack of motor
  coordination.
• Increased pressure in the skull can also cause
  paralysis, weakness, loss of consciousness, slow
  breathing, slow heart rate, and more. Abnormal
  posturing is another large sign of a brain
  injury.

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Assessment Diagnosis

• The diagnosis of TBI is usually obvious following
  a major accident. But, the symptoms do not always
  show up right away and it may take time for the
  patient to realize that they are having
  difficulty in tasks that were once easy.
• Methods of Diagnosis
• Neurological examination
• CAT scan, MRI, SPECT, and PET to image the brain
• Cognitive evaluation by a neuropsychologist
• Speech, physical, and occupational evaluations by
  therapists in those specific fields

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Treatment Therapies

• Medications
• Diuretics
• Anti-Seizure Drugs
• Coma-inducing drugs
• Therapy Rehabilitation
• Surgery
• Removing blood clots
• Repairing skull fractures
• Opening a window in the skull

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References

• "9 1/2 Need-To-Know Facts About Traumatic Brain
  Injury." Traumatic Brain Injury - TBI Head
  Injury Resource BrainLine.org. N.p., n.d. Web.
  11 Mar. 2010. lthttp//www.brainline.org/content/20
  10/01/9-12-need-to-know-facts-about-traumatic-brai
  n-injury.htmlgt.
• "Diagnosis of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)."
  TBI Traumatic Brain Injury Traumatic Brain
  Injury Resources Brain Injury Support Brain
  Injury Information . N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar.
  2010. lthttp//www.traumaticbraininjury.com/content
  /symptoms/diagnosisoftbi.htmlgt.
• "Traumatic Brain Injury Information Page
  National Institute of Neurological Disorders and
  Stroke (NINDS)." National Institute of
  Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). N.p.,
  n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2010. lthttp//www.ninds.nih.gov/
  disorders/tbi/tbi.htmgt.
• "Traumatic Brain Injury." Special Education.
  N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2010. lthttp//specialed.ab
  out.com/od/disabilities/a/tbi.htmgt.
• "Traumatic brain injury - MayoClinic.com." Mayo
  Clinic medical information and tools for healthy
  living - MayoClinic.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar.
  2010. lthttp//www.mayoclinic.com/health/traumatic-
  brain-injury/DS00552gt.
• Uomoto, Jay, and Ph.D.. "What Do
  Neuropsychological Tests Measure?." Brain Injury
  Resource Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar.
  2010. lthttp//www.birf.info/home/library/emotional
  /emotbi_lifecha.htmlgt.