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Traumatic Brain Injury 

A Traumatic Brain Injury ( TBI), is a blunt trauma to the head caused by the following: motor vehicle accidents; falls; hit in the head by an object, and assaults.

 

We are all at risk for sustaining a Traumatic Brain Injury, however, children and senior citizens are at the highest risk for a TBI. Sustaining an injury to the head is the biggest cause of death and major disabilities, with motor vehicles accidents being the main causes of these deaths and major disabilities when people of the ages of 15 to 24 years of age are involved in these accidents.

 

The quicker a head trauma is diagnosed and treated, the quicker and better the chance for a good outcome, especially if the person who just sustained a TBI can be evaluated and treated at a major medical center with trauma designation. Depending on the extent of the Traumatic Brain Injury, there may be a need for lifetime of complex rehabilitation medical and psychological care. At the time of a diagnosis for a TBI is made, the TBI will be determined as mild, moderate, or severe.

 

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms:

 

  • Most common TBI

  • Sleepiness

  • Headache

  • Vision disturbances

  • Memory difficulties

  • Trouble with concentration and attention

  • Poor balance/dizzy

  • Very irritable with behavioral health disturbances

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Moderate Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms:

 

  • Unconscious for more that 30 minutes

  • Medical and cognitive disturbances

  • Will receive beneficial help from rehabilitation

  • Severe Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms:

  • In a coma

 

Additional Potential Side Effects of Traumatic Brain Injury:

 

Neurological: confusion; seizures; post-traumatic amnesia; disorientation

 

Emotional Disturbances: aggressiveness; depression; anxiety; mood lability

 

Common Population Risk Factors of Traumatic Brain Injury:

 

  • A TBI sustained by babies/children may cause developmental delays.

  • A TBI sustained by the elderly will result in a long and a difficult recovery.

  • If an individual is under the influence of a substance when sustaining a TBI, this will cause an increase of the severity of the TBI.

  • If an individual is in the active military and sustains a TBI, a PTSD may co-occur along with the TBI.

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The Leading Causes of Traumatic Brain Injury and The Populations Affected:

 

1. Falls: the youngest age groups, and the oldest age groups ( over 65 years) are most affected.

 

2. A Blunt Trauma to the Head: when an individual is hit in the head with an object: primarily affects children younger than 15 years old.

 

3. Motor Vehicle Accidents: Main causes of death/disabilities of individuals ages 15 to 24.

 

4. Assaults: Primarily affects individuals who are 15 to 44 years old.

 

Local Resources:

 

Berks County:

 

Mental Health Resources:

 

Services, Access & Management of Berks County, including mental health crisis and emergency services. Call 610-236-0530

The Greater Reading Mental Health Alliance "An affiliate of Mental Health America"  at 1234 Penn Ave. Wyomissing, Pa. Call 610-775-3000.

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For TBI Resources as a Result of Assaults/Violence:

 

Safe Berks: for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Call 610-372-9540.

Rehabilitation Resources for TBI:

 

Reading Health Rehabilitation Hospital: Has a brain injury unit for individuals with TBI. Call 484-628-2388. Web site: Readinghealth.org/services/rehabilitation.

HealthSouth Reading Rehabilitation Hospital:Treatment services for individuals with TBI.Call 610-796-6000. Web site: www.healthsouthreading.com.

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Greater Lehigh Valley:

 

Mental Health Resources:

 

1. Services, Access & Management of Lehigh and Northampton Counties, including mental health crisis and emergency services. Call 610-419-9102.

 

2. National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). 802 West Broad Street, Bethlehem, Pa.: For education, information, and support for families and friends with mental illness. Call 610-882-2102.

 

For TBI Resources as a Result of Assaults/Violence:

 

1. Turning Point of Lehigh Valley: For victims of abuse and their children for Lehigh and Northampton Counties. Call 1-877-438-4957.Web site: turningpointlv.org/home.

 

Rehabilitation Resources for TBI:

 

1. Good Shepard Rehabilitation Hospital-Allentown, Pa.: Brain injury rehabilitation inpatient and outpatient programs, including behavior management. Call 610-776-3501.

 

Internet Resources:

 

  • Brain Injury Association of America: www.biausa.org ( national); www.biapa.org ( for Pennsylvania).

  • cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury ( education/support for individuals with TBI & families).

  • www.amtrauma.org ( resources for TBI)

  • www.bhsi.org ( Bike helmet Safety Institute)

  • www.colorado.edu/cspu ( center for study and prevention of violence).

  • traumasurvivorsnetwork.org ( survivor support for families and friends).

  • caring-for-aging-parents/fall-prevention-in-the-elderly.html ( fall prevention strategies)

  • co.berks.pa.us/aging ( Office of Aging in Berks County)

  • www.lehighcounty.org/Departments/Human-Services/aging ( Lehigh County Office of Aging & Adult Services).

  • counseling.org/knowledge-center/trauma-disaster ( resources for mental health disasters)

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Hotlines:

 

Local: 911

 

National: 1-800-SUICIDE

 

References:

 

1.American Psychiatric Association: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition. Arlington, VA, American Psychiatric Association, 2013.

 

2.Centers For Disease Control and Prevention. ( 2016). Traumatic brain injury & concussion.Retrieved March 6, 2017, from https://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury/index.html.

 

3. Usher, E.J. (2017). Basic trauma nursing, 4th edition. ( CE Express). Brockton, MA: Western Schools

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