Imagine: you take your child to the playground, watch her
climb up the tallest slide, and on the way down she loses her balance and slips
off hitting her head, hard. You rush to your daughter, but she doesn’t cry; you
immediately know something is terribly wrong. Severe injury to her brain has
induced a coma, and potentially changed her life forever.
A traumatic brain
injury (TBI) occurs every 16 seconds nationwide, making brain injury the
most frequent cause of disability and death under the age of 35. Of the 1.7
million Americans who sustain a TBI annually, over half are children, 275,000
are hospitalized, and 52,000 die.
Children mend fairly easily, though not when it comes to
TBI. Children’s skulls are only 1/8 as strong as that of adults,
making children especially vulnerable to injury. Fortunately, there is
promising, cutting-edge research in the field of TBI treatment and rehabilitation.
The TBI and
Neurotrama Program within CIMIT is dedicated to the development of new and
innovative treatments for patients and families. Each day, the use of
robotics, virtual reality and gaming, data analysis and functional MRIs, allow
doctors and researchers to gain a better understanding of TBI and its effects
on the patients as well as the endless web of individuals touched by tragedy.
The good news is awareness about traumatic brain injury is
increasing – through continuous efforts of national organizations like the Brain Injury Association of America
and Department of Defense millions have been dedicated to protecting against
these potentially life-threatening injuries. Additional support and funding
comes from the NFL
Players Association committee whose goal is to address diagnosis,
treatment, and prevention of brain injuries, and the long-term cumulative
effects of isolated or repetitive TBI.
Because TBI cannot be cured, steps
must be taken to prevent an injury from occurring. The recent death
of actress Natasha Richardson induced by a fall while skiing on a beginner
trail raises awareness of the subtle yet fatal dangers of TBI. Our returning
wounded warriors from Afghanistan
and Iraq
are further reminders that helmets and seatbelts cannot protect everyone. It
is time to learn more about diagnosing and treating all TBI patients –
soldiers, athletes and children too.
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