WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON CAUSES OF TBIS?

A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as a concussion, can have a dramatic impact on your life in Virginia. In some instances, a TBI can be fatal. Understanding the common causes of TBIs can help you to know when to take greater precautions.

The data on TBIs in the U.S. is well-established, thanks to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Their most recent data is from 2014, and for that year it shows that among deaths, hospitalizations and ER visits in the U.S., about 2.87 million of them were due to or related to TBIs.

Among all TBI-related hospitalizations, the second-most frequent cause was car accidents, which accounted for 20%. Driving defensively and buckling up can help you to prevent a motor vehicle collision from happening in the first place.

Falls were the leading causes of TBIs in 2014, making up 52% of TBI-related hospitalizations. The data changes depending on age groups. For instance, 81% of hospitalizations due to TBI for people aged 65 and over were due to falls, whereas for children aged 0 to 17, falls only accounted for 49% of ER visits.

You can help to protect your elderly or balance-impaired family members by encouraging them to install fixtures in their homes that they can hold on to. If it is difficult for you to balance on your own, it is safer to walk with some form of assistance, be it a cane, walker or wheelchair.

TBIs for children 17 and younger were caused by being struck by or against an object 28% of the time. You can protect kids in your home by putting padding on the corners and edges of tables and other risky objects.

This article is purely informative and should not be used as legal advice.