Health Care

by Peter Kent

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can come about from the head hitting or being hit by some object. However, there needn't be any penetration into the head for the brain to be damaged; external impact can also injure the brain. Brain damage can occur from a variety of different actions where the impact on the head causes the brain to be pushed against the skull, such as in cases of whiplash.

A moderate type of TBI is called a concussion. People who have had concussions usually recover without any long term effects unless that person has already had repeated concussions. Severe and continual post-concussion symptoms may be caused by multiple brain injuries. A very serious and dangerous condition or even death can occur if a second concussion is suffered while symptoms from a previous concussion still persist. This condition is called second-impact syndrome (SIS). Sports-Related Concussions ' Causes and Frequency

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 300,000 people experience concussions each year from sports injuries. Most of the concussions that are sports related come from contact sports such as martial arts, football, hockey, and boxing. Other major causes of a large number of sports-related concussions are falls or collisions in sports such as skiing, bicycling, horseback riding, basketball, and soccer. In soccer an additional risk for concussions is "heading" the ball.

Males between the ages of 16 and 25 have the largest likelihood of the population to sustain concussions from sports. Within this group, the risk is highest at the high school level. About 25 percent of the 300,000 sports-related concussions reported each year are suffered by high school students playing contact sports. At the college level, over one third of football players has suffered a concussion and about 20 percent have had multiple concussions. Dangers of Multiple Concussions

Second-impact syndrome (SIS), which is a concussion that occurs while the victim is still recovering from an earlier concussion, has resulted in at least 26 deaths in the past 20 years since this condition was first characterized. Most of the people getting concussions were not even in college yet.

While most cases of SIS and multiple concussions do not cause death, the neuropsychological brain damage they cause is significant. Many studies have shown that athletes who have suffered multiple concussions are more likely to have prolonged learning difficulties and perform more poorly on neuropsychological tests compared to people who have had one concussion or no concussions. Some the well-documented neuropsychological impairments in athletes who have had multiple concussions are:

* Reduced speed in processing new information

* Problem solving and planning difficulties

* Increased number of headaches

* Concentration difficulties

* Memory impairments

* Behavioral problems

Why Athletes Suffer Multiple Concussions

Factors that contribute to why athletes suffer multiple concussions are related to the ability to accurately assess severity and recovery from symptoms. For example, there are several different scales for rating severity at the time of the concussion but there is general lack of agreement on which to use. There is also lack of agreement on what amount of time should pass before athletes can safely return to sports. This is because there are not any widely accepted guidelines for assessing whether the athlete has recovered. Preventing Traumatic Brain Injury

Using proper protective equipment can prevent many cases of concussion. For additional safety, a helmet or other form of suitable headgear should be used in sports where there is contact, or in sports where there is a risk of falling or crashing such as bicycling, horseback riding, or skiing. Custom fitted mouth pieces may also help prevent concussions in contact sports. In order for safety equipment to be effective, it should always be made sure that it fits well and that it is used solely for the purpose that it was meant to be used for.

Although the risk of concussion is inherent in sports participation, decisions as to what sport to participate in can help mitigate the risk of concussion. If you suffer from a brain injury received while playing a sport, you might like to contact an experienced TBI attorney. Your traumatic brain injury attorney can help you assess your potential TBI claim and help you get the compensation you deserve for the devastation incurred in traumatic brain injuries.

About the Author

Your source for everything legal on the web is located at LegalView.com. You can find LegalView at http://www.legalview.com and access a complete legal database and also make use of the free attorney referral service. Utilizing this service, users can find attorneys dealing with a variety of legal services such as an auto accident lawyer or mesothelioma lawyers. Visitors can also find a brain injury lawyer at http://brain-injury.legalview.com/

Alan Haburchak

Traumatic brain injury (TBI), which is caused by trauma to the head, can impact many of the body's normal functions, including its ability to maintain balance. Balance disorders (also known as balance dysfunctions or balance impairments) are common following brain injury. Compared to other conditions that also result in balance disorders (such as strokes), relatively few studies have been done regarding the effects of TBI on balance. Fortunately, this is changing.

Symptoms of Balance Disorders

Balance disorders occur, at least temporarily, in nearly all people who have suffered a TBI. This instability can exist even when neurological tests do not detect any problems.

Common symptoms of balance dysfunctions include:

* Feeling dizzy, lightheaded, woozy or a sensation of spinning (vertigo)

* Burred vision

* Falling or unsteady gait (feeling of falling)

Diagnosing Balance Disorders

Maintaining balance is a complex multifunctional process that involves interplay between three systems:

* Vestibular system (the inner ear balance organs)

* Visual system (eyes)

* Somatosenory system (joint and muscle receptors or sensors)

Normally, the brain receives and processes information about the environment and these systems work together to control balance. The Sensory Organization Test (SOT) is the primary test that assesses balance impairment by evaluating each of the three balance systems. Balance Impairment and Severity of Traumatic Brain Injury

The severity of TBI is determined using several measures such as:

* Glasgow Coma Test

* Length of unconsciousness (time in a coma)

* Length of post-traumatic amnesia (PTA)

For TBI patients beginning rehabilitation, there is a significant relationship between TBI severity and degree of sitting and standing balance impairment. Patients with more severe TBI ratings also have more impaired balance ratings.

Recovery from Balance Disorders Caused by Traumatic Brain Injury

A study at Wayne State University found that the degree of balance impairment for brain-damaged patients (specifically sitting balance impairment), measured at time of admission to rehabilitation can predict the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) at discharge. FIM measures the degree to which recovering patients can live independently after discharge. This study underscores the relationship between brain injury severity, balance impairment, and the prognosis for TBI recovery.

For cases of mild traumatic brain injury in which there was no loss of consciousness and no clinically detectable problems, balance impairments (as measured by performance on the Sensory Organization Test), usually last from 3 to 10 days. However, subtle balance impairments that are harder to detect, such as abnormally high reliance on vision for maintaining balance, can persist for months or years.

Individual treatment plans for balance disorders may include balance retraining exercises, general exercise, and certain drugs. Recovery takes time and recovery times vary. Some brain-injured people require assistance for years. If you have suffered from a traumatic brain injury, you may wish to contact an experienced TBI attorney to help you assess your claim and gain compensation for your medical expenses, future medical care, and the pain and suffering that brain damage and brain injury can cause.

Lisa Clark is a freelance writer. She is the author of various factual articles as well as short stories. She is currently working on a novel about a TBI survivor.