Definitions
An acquired brain injury (ABI) means that the brain has been damaged as a result of an accident, illness or operation. There are two types of ABI: traumatic brain injury and non-traumatic brain injury and both occur after birth.
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI):
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an acquired brain injury that occurs when a sudden trauma causes damage to the brain. TBI can result when the head suddenly and violently hits an object, or when an object pierces the skull and enters brain tissue. Symptoms of the TBI can be mild, moderate or severe, depending on the extent of the damage to the brain. A person with a mild TBI may remain conscious or may experience a loss of consciousness for a few seconds or minutes. Other symptoms of mild TBI include headache, confusion,lightheadedness, dizziness, blurred vision or tired eyes, ringing in the ears, bad taste in the mouth, fatigue or lethargy, a change in sleep patterns, behavioral or mood changes, trouble with memory, concentration, attention or thinking. A person with a moderate or severe TBI may show these same symptoms, but may also have a headache that gets worse or does not go away, repeated vomiting or nausea, convulsions or seizures, an inability to awaken from sleep, dilation of one or both pupils of the eyes, slurred speech, weakness or numbness in the extremities, loss of coordination, and increased confusion, restlessness, or agitation. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/tbi/tbi.htm
Trauma means that a knock to the body that causes someone to bruise, bleed or fracture a bone. Simply put Traumatic Brain Injury means a knock or blow that causes the brain to get bruised, cut, bleed or spin around inside the skull.
Non-Traumatic Brain Injury:
Non-traumatic brain injury means that the brain has been damaged by an illness. There are no cuts or broken bones but a non-traumatic brain injury is still very serious. The name non-traumatic is a bit misleading to some people. Examples of non-traumatic brain injury include:
- Meningitis or Encephalitis which is caused by a virus or bacteria getting to the brain
- Brain tumour where some cells in the brain grow wrong our mutate and form a lump inside the brain. For more about brain tumours visit http://www.headstrongkids.org.uk/
- Hypoxic injury is where some of the brain cells die because they didn't get enough oxygen
- Brain injury through some other part of the body going wrong such as the kidneys or liver. This is due to an electrolyte imbalance or a metabolic disorder.
- A stroke is sometimes called a "brain attack". A stroke can injure the brain like a heart attack can injure the heart. A stroke occurs when part of brain doesn't get the blood it needs. There are two types of stroke and both can cause brain cells to die. This may cause a person to lose control of their speech, movement and memory to name a few.
brain. This often happens because the artery is clogged with fatty deposits or a blood clot.
Hemorrhagic Stroke - This type of stroke happens when a blood vessel in the brain bursts, and blood bleeds into the brain. This type of stroke can be caused by an aneurysm - a thin or weak spot in an artery that balloons out
and can burst.
[Acquired Brain Injury] [Definitions] [Concussion] [Coma Scales] [Stats] [Costs]
Resources for Acquired Brain Injury pages are from the following websites:
Ontario Brain Injury Association www.obia.ca
Canadian Brain Injury Association:www.biac-aclc.ca
Brain Trust Canada: www.braintrustcanada.com
Brain Injury Association of Nipissing:http://dawn.thot.net/brain/
