Risk Factors
The differences between men and women are apparent in the emergency room as well: It is estimated that two to three males sustain a traumatic brain injury for every one female (The National Head Injury Foundation (NHIF). Some of the reasons for a higher rate of brain injuries among men are:
- Men are more likely to engage in risky behaviour such as drinking and driving
- Men are more likely to get into physical fights
- Men are more likely to play contact sports like hockey and football
- Men are more likely to have occupations that involve manual labour or the use of heavy machinery
“Traumatic brain injury is the number one cause of death and disability for people under the age of 45, and in fact, under the age of 35, men are twice as likely as women to have a traumatic brain injury,” says Dr. Brad Hallam, a neuropsychologist at Vancouver Coastal Health who is also active in the Men's Health Initiative of BC. “The factors related to this are not completely understood, but what's interesting to point out is that the brain doesn't actually fully mature until the age of 25, and the part of the brain that is last to mature is responsible for things like judgement, insight and decision making.
“Therefore, people in this age range are more at risk in terms of making poor judgements and poor decisions. Another factor related to that is that this is typically an age group where people are experimenting with the limits of drugs and alcohol.”
Every year in Canada, about 11,000 people die as a result of traumatic brain injuries. However, there is good news: these numbers can be reduced.
“One of the exciting things about brain injury is the fact that it's so preventable,” says Dr. Hallam. “It's estimated that eight to nine out of every ten traumatic brain injuries could actually have been prevented. And, there's very practical things that can be done: wearing a helmet if you're skateboarding or snowboarding, knowing your own limits for alcohol, and wearing your seat belt in the car, for example.”
