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Name

HLTH 103

CONCUSSIONS & HEAD INJURIES

HEAD INJURY

• Injury to the scalp, skull, or brain

• Precisely defined as “ any head injury that does not damage the skull or brain”

• Includes the following:

• Cuts

• Abrasions

• Contusions

• Skull fractures

• Hemorrhaging

• Concussions

• TBI

SUPERFICIAL HEAD INJURIES

• Children under 5 and adults over 85 at highest risk

• Tend to be less serious

• Cuts, lacerations, abrasions, contusions

• Happen in a range of activities

• Sports

• Workplace accidents

• Day to day life

• Shouldn’t be treated with a lesser degree of care

• Can still lead to complications

• excessive blood loss

• infection

SUPERFICIAL INJURIES: WHEN TO SEEK HELP

• Wound does not stop bleeding

• Visible and excessive deformity present

• Wound begins to smell or becomes discolored

• Wound emits fluid discharge (sign of infection)

• Any burning, tingling, or unusual sensation on or around wound site

• Any neurological symptoms (dizziness, fatigue, tingling in arms fingers or feet, blurred vision etc)

• usually an indicator of a more serious injury

• All head injuries have potentially dangerous implications and should be treated with the appropriate level of care and caution

SUPERFICIAL HEAD INJURIES: TREATMENT

• Clean and disinfect any open wounds that may be present

• If possible stop bleeding before bandaging (head wounds have a tendency to bleed a lot, it may take longer than expected)

• Check bandages regularly, if bleeding resumes or cannot be stopped seek medical help

• Pain medication as needed

• Stitches for deeper wounds

• Clotting agents

PREVENTION

• Protective equipment during everyday tasks and activities

• Helmets during cycling, horse riding, and sports

• Seat belts and airbags when driving

• Obeying warning signs and labels

• Common sense

• Child proofing the home and not leaving children unobserved

CONCUSSIONS & TBI • TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury)- occurs when an external force traumatically

injures the brain

• Can be a result of a direct blow to the head or whiplash from a blow to another part of the body

• Most common causes are violence, construction, transportation accidents, and sports

• Estimated that between 1.6 and 3.8 TBI’s per year are due to sports and recreation

• Called the “signature injury of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan”

TBI SYMPTOMS

• Dizziness

• Confusion

• Drowsiness

• Fatigue

• CSF/Bloody discharge from ears and/or nose

• Uneven pupil size

• Tingling/numbness in extremities

• Blurred vision

• Symptoms will vary depending on the part of the brain that has been injured

CONCUSSIONS

• Concussions are a type of TBI and the most well known

• Occur when the brain hits the inside of the skull at high speed

• Same type of symptoms as TBI

• Individuals also frequently experience changes in mood as well as post- traumatic amnesia

• Experiencing one concussion makes an individual more susceptive to another

• Diagnosed by presence of symptoms in conjunction with neural imaging in some cases

• If the mechanism of injury is unknown it can be difficult to diagnose due to it sharing symptoms with other injuries and disorders

COMPLICATIONS • Loss of hearing, vision, and smell

• Memory loss

• Coma

• Dementia (later in life, usually after multiple injuries)

• Brain hemorrhaging

• Can result in a buildup of pressure in the skull causing significantly more damage than the original injury itself

TREATMENT

• Control and monitoring of intercranial pressure

• Neural imaging to rule out hemorrhaging and CSF buildup

• Bed rest

• Limited exposure to light and loud noise

• Physical/occupational therapy as needed in severe cases

• It is important to identify and treat TBI as soon as possible in order to prevent worsening of the situation and further injury

PREVENTION

• Use of safety equipment in sports, everyday life, and the workplace

• Helmets in sports, hard hats in construction, seatbelts when driving

• Education about mechanisms of injury

• Axial loading

• Head up vs head down tackling

• Education about repeated injuries and their consequences and increase in likelihood

REFERENCES • Bray, R. M., Pemberton, M. R., Lane, M. E., Hourani, L. L., Mattiko, M. J., & Babeu, L. A.

(2010). Substance Use and Mental Health Trends Among U.S. Military Active Duty Personnel: Key Findings From the 2008 DoD Health Behavior Survey. Military Medicine, 175(6), 390-399.

• Eisen, S. V., Schultz, M. R., Vogt, D., Glickman, M. E., Elwy, A. R., Drainoni, M., & ... Martin, J. (2012). Mental and Physical Health Status and Alcohol and Drug Use Following Return From Deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan. American Journal of Public Health, 102(S1), S66-S73.

• Mustillo, S. A., Kysar-Moon, A., Douglas, S. R., Hargraves, R., MacDermid Wadsworth, S., Fraine, M., & Frazer, N. L. (2015). Overview of Depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Alcohol Misuse Among Active Duty Service Members Returning From Iraq and Afghanistan, Self-Report and Diagnosis. Military Medicine, 180(4), 419- 427. doi:10.7205/MILMED-D-14-00335.