Traumatic Brain Damage - Critical Illness Insurance
A traumatic brain injury or damage can be commonly known as TBI. Typically a TBI has different severity levels and various sites of where the trauma or injury has affected different parts of the brain. Unfortunately if an individual was to sustain any traumatic brain damage it can result in death and it is one of the most common causes of death across the world. It has been found that the risk of death from a brain injury is more commonly found in children and young adults than the older age groups.
A TBI or traumatic brain injury can be caused by many different things. Some of these may be:
- A fall
- A bang to the head
- A car accident where head injuries have been sustained
- Violent attacks to the head.
If a TBI has occurred there can not only be physical damage caused to the head but dependent on the severity of the damage caused to the brain it can leave the individual with behavioural problems, emotional issues and movements of limbs etc and in some cases even death. In some cases the individual may be able to regain some of their normal functions, however on the other hand it is all dependant on how severe the damage was that they sustained originally. This may leave them with life long effects of the original injury caused.
Typically the injuries sustained are broken down into three different types, severe brain injuries, moderate and mild injuries. Mild and moderate conditions may be displayed in a way that the individual may experience things like periods of black outs and possibly a short period of loss of consciousness. In some cases the individual may experience concussion which can often be undetected.
If an individual was to sustain a severe traumatic brain injury they may experience the loss of consciousness but on a longer period. This may be days or it can even last for weeks. This can lead to permanent disabilities. With concussion being a common form of TBI it can be followed or related to other types of injuries such as penetration injuries. This is where a foreign object may enter the skull. This could be anything sharp etc which can result in the head bleeding internally and causing damage to the brain. Bruising caused by bangs, knocks and blows to the head can result in bleeding. There can also be injuries caused to the brain which result in tearing the brains tissues; this is called diffuse axonal injuries.
Unfortunately as the brain is so complex and kind of injury can affect it in the slightest way. The recovery process from having a TBI can be very hard to predict and how long it will take. There are tests available to say how long this period might take. One of the best things that a doctor can offer to a patient is rehabilitation therapy along with medication to help the pain and help with some of the symptoms the individual may be suffering.