New Study Finds Old Forgotten Head Injuries the Source of Many Mental/Emotional Issues
by www.SixWise.com
What do learning disabilities, homelessness and alcoholism
have in common? They may all be related to a long-ago head
injury, according to emerging research.
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Even a mild or moderate head injury, such as getting
hit with a softball, can cause lasting changes in your
personality and mental functioning.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates
that over 5 million Americans have a mental or physical disability
due to such a brain injury, however this estimate is based
only on hospital admissions -- and does not take into account
the countless others who did not seek medical attention.
"Unidentified traumatic brain injury is an unrecognized
major source of social and vocational failure," says
Wayne A. Gordon, director of the Brain Injury Research Center
at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York in The Wall
Street Journal.
According to research from Mount Sinai, about 7-8 percent
of the U.S. population has some form of traumatic brain injury
-- mild, moderate, or severe. Some of these head injuries
may have happened long ago, and even be completely forgotten,
yet could still be impacting your life.
For instance, according to various studies by Mount Sinai
researchers:
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A 2000 study found that people who recalled a past head
injury that was followed by confusion had more than double
the rate of depression and alcohol and drug abuse as those
who did not. They also had increased rates of panic disorder,
obsessive-compulsive disorder, and suicide attempts.
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In a study of students with learning disabilities, 50
percent had suffered a hard blow to the head.
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According to one Mount Sinai psychologist, about 20 percent
of children with learning disabilities or behavior problems
have had a traumatic brain injury.
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In a study of 100 homeless people, 82 percent had a significant
blow to the head prior to becoming homeless.
What Happens to Your Brain After a Head Injury?
In the event of a closed head injury, your brain collides
with your skull, bruising brain tissue and tearing blood vessels.
The rapid movement of your head (such as occurs during a car
crash) may also stretch or injure your neuronal axons, which
are nerve cells that link parts of your brain together, and
link parts of your brain to other parts of your body. Such
an injury tends to impact a wide range of functioning.
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Up to 20 percent of kids with learning disabilities
or behavior problems may have had a traumatic brain
injury.
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In an open-head injury, such as from a bullet wound, the
damage tends to be more focused on one area of the brain (although
it can be more serious and diffuse, depending on the injury).
Brain injuries, whether mild or severe, all have the potential
to impact the following:
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Cognitive skills (concentration, learning to skills,
attention span)
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Speech and language skills
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Personality (lethargy, aggression, mood swings, dependent
behaviors)
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Senses (vision, hearing, smell, taste, touch)
For those who experienced a head injury long ago, researchers
are realizing that the blow may long be forgotten, but the
impacts could linger on.
For some, the head injury leads to irritability or depression,
which turns into substance abuse. Others have a hard time
juggling tasks throughout the day, and become disorganized,
easily distracted or unable to hold a job.
In fact, according to the Brain Injury Association of America
(BIAA), one study found that 40 percent of people hospitalized
with a traumatic brain injury had at least one problem that
still lingered one year later. Most frequently, this was:
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Improving memory and problem solving
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Managing stress and emotional upset
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Controlling their temper
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Improving their job skills
What Can You Do?
Knowing how most head injuries occur, and what you can do
to prevent them, is one of your best weapons against head
injuries.
According to BIAA, the most common causes of traumatic brain
injuries are:
In general, you can reduce your risk of head injury by:
Also, be sure to read through The
Top 5 Causes of Head Injuries and How to Avoid Them for
more tips on how to avoid the top causes of head injuries.
Recommended Reading
What
to Do if You Cut Off Your Finger (and 9 Other Important Injury
Tips)
What
to Do if Your Teeth Get Knocked Out (and 9 MORE Important
Injury Tips)
Sources
Mount
Sinai Traumatic Brain Injury Central
Brain
Injury Association of America
The
Wall Street Journal January 29, 2008