California Brain Injury Symptom Attorneys
Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms in Adults and Children
According to the Centers for Disease Control there are more than 1.4 million people who suffer a traumatic brain injury each year in the United States. Of those who suffer a traumatic brain injury:
- 50,000 die
- 235,000 need hospitalization
- 1.1 million are treated and released from an emergency room.
The causes of traumatic brain injury are many and range from falls (28%) and motor vehicle crashes (20%) to being struck by/against occurrences (19%) and assaults (11%).
TBI occurs twice as often in men than in women. The two groups most at risk for suffering TBI are:
- Individuals between the ages of 15 and 24.
- Individuals 75 and older.
Because many of the symptoms of TBI do not manifest themselves immediately, a traumatic brain injury can be missed after the injury occurs. The symptoms may take days or weeks to appear so it is important if you’ve hit your head because of a fall, a car accident or some other injury, to seek immediate medical attention—even if you don’t show any symptoms.
For adults, the symptoms of TBI are many and include:
- Headaches or neck pain that doesn’t go away
- Ringing in the ears
- Feeling confused or becoming easily lost
- Difficulty in thinking, speaking, or reading
- Problems with memory, concentration or making decisions;
- Blurred vision
- Nausea
- Dizziness, light-headedness, or loss of balance
- Feeling constantly fatigued
- Changes in sleep patterns-either sleeping more or less
For children, the symptoms of TBI are similar:
Oftentimes, young children are unable to clearly let others know how they feel. Children’s symptoms can often include:
- Feeling tired or listless
- Constant crying or crankiness
- Changes in eating patterns (not willing to eat or nurse)
- Vomiting
- Changes in the child’s play habits
- Changes in sleep patterns
- Inability to walk without losing balance or falling
- Showing no interest in favorite activities or games
- Poor performance in school
- Forgetting newly learned skills such as toilet training, using utensils.