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What is a Brain Injury?
Traumatic brain injury (TBI), also called brain injury or head injury, occurs when a blow or jolt to the head results in damage to the brain. TBI's range in severity from mild to severe. A mild TBI occurs when a person has a brief change in mental status or loss of consciousness. The most common type of brain injury, a concussion, is classified as a mild traumatic brain injury. Mild TBI often goes un-diagnosed, and consequently the person suffering the injury loses out on the benefits of rehabilitation and medical care. Severe TBIs may involve loss of consciousness for hours or weeks and can result in permanent disability. Any TBI, whether mild or severe, can result in short- or long-term disability. There are many different types of traumatic brain injury, including:
- Concussions: The most common type of TBI
- Penetration injury: From bullets or other objects entering the skull
- Contusions: Bleeding that results from blows to the head
- Diffuse axonal injury: Damage from tearing of the brain tissue (includes shaken baby syndrome and some bicycle, car, and motorcycle accident injuries
Facts about TBI 5.3 million Americans, approximately 2% of the population, currently live with disabilities related to brain injury.
- Males are more than twice as likely as females to experience a TBI.
- TBI is most common among adolescents (ages 15-24) and older adults (75 and older).
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The most common causes of TBI:
Falls (40.5%)
Unintentional blunt trauma (15.5%)
Motor vehicle accidents (14.3%)
Violence (10%)
- TBI is a contributing factor to a third (30.5%) of all injury-related deaths in the United States.
- The direct medical costs and indirect costs of TBI, such as lost productivity, total an estimated $60 billion in the United States.
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