March is Brain Injury Awareness Month
For this year’s Brain Injury Awareness Month, which runs throughout the month of March, government safety officials are focusing on raising awareness of the traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) during youth sports. However, a head injury can also occur from an auto accident, slip and fall, work injury or other personal injury, potentially resulting in a serious brain trauma.
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This month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is urging parents, coaches and school officials, as well as athletes, to become more proactive in reducing the risk of concussions among youths playing sports to reduce the risk of traumatic brain injury. Over the past year, the CDC has used online training and video to educate about 200,000 coaches. Its youth TBI campaign is called Heads Up to Schools: Know Your Concussion ABCs.
Concussions are a form of brain injury, which is one of the leading causes of death and permanent disability worldwide. The CDC estimates that the U.S. sees 1.7 million traumatic brain injury-related deaths, hospitalizations and emergency department visits each year. About 135,000 of those traumatic brain injury emergency room visits are sports or recreation related.
It is equally as important to recognize the signs of a potential brain injury following auto accidents, falls or other incidents. Symptoms of a traumatic head injury may vary depending on the severity of the brain injury, but could include:
- Headache, Vomiting, Nausea
- Lack of Motor Coordination
- Dizziness, Difficulty Balancing, Lightheadedness
- Blurred Vision
- Ringing in the Ears
- Bad Taste in the Mouth
- Convulsions
- Changes in Sleep Patterns
- Slurred Speech
The CDC recommends seeking immediate medical attention when someone suffers a blow to the head and then experiences a headache that gets worse and does not go away; weakness, numbness or decreased coordination; repeated vomiting or nausea; or slurred speech. Other signs that someone should see a health care professional include excessive drowsiness, having one pupil larger than the other, convulsions or seizures, an inability to recognize people or places, confusion, unusual behavior and loss of consciousness.
Children, in addition to the above symptoms, should be taken to an emergency department immediately if they will not stop crying and cannot be consoled or will not nurse or eat.
BRAIN INJURY ATTORNEYS
If you, a friend or a family member has suffered a traumatic brain injury due to the negligence of another person or company, you should have an attorney review your case. Potential brain injury lawsuits are reviewed by our law firm on behalf of individuals who have suffered a head injury caused by another person’s negligence. To review a case, request a free consultation and claim evaluation.
1 Comment • Add Your Comments
ADAM says:
When i got my serius brain injury. I was 15 years old. And i was helping my landlord fix my house and my landlord was doing servere drugs because he fell asleep on my 3 story house and dropped a 60 pound hammer drill off the roof and hit me in my head. And went to the hospital and was there 3 weeks and they found out that my right frontal lobe was seriusly damaged. And now i have seizures and severe headaces and have to take 2800mgs of seizure meds. 80mgs of anticonvulcents meds and im in pain on my left side all day everyday. And im so depressed. Im miserable every day…Thank you for letting me talk about it.
Posted on March 14, 2011 at 8:19 pm