Symptoms
Traumatic brain injuries range from a mild concussion that a patient recovers from within hours, to a severe injury that causes death. Depending on the extent of the brain injury, the symptoms will also vary, from very minor to life-threatening.
“Mild traumatic brain injury is the most common form of brain injury: about 70 to 90% of brain injuries are mild,” says Dr. Brad Hallam, a neuropsychologist at Vancouver Coastal Health who is also active in the Men's Health Initiative of BC. “The common symptoms associated with mild traumatic brain injury would be feelings of confusion, irritability, changes in memory and concentration, headaches, and difficulty sleeping.
In many cases, the symptoms of mild traumatic brain injury will not persist. However, even head injuries that appear to be mild at the time of the accident can cause ongoing symptoms such as irritability, depression, dizziness, sensitivity to noise and light, and difficulty learning and remembering new information. A mild traumatic brain injury can negatively impact relationships and greatly interfere with work and home life.
“If a brain injury is moderate or more severe, typically someone is having difficulty staying alert or staying conscious, and may have difficulty moving parts of their body or have changes in their speech,” says Dr. Hallam. “In severe traumatic brain injury, the symptoms are much more easily recognizable. A person will have changes in physical functioning, and would likely need to use a cane or a walker, and will have noticeably slurred or changed speech, or difficulty speaking. It's very similar to what you would expect to see in a severe stroke.”
Fortunately, family physicians have become more educated about recognizing the symptoms of traumatic brain injury. In 2003, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention called brain injury the “silent epidemic,” which has led to a greater understanding among the medical community.
“There's a lot of growing awareness around traumatic brain injury symptoms and prevention,” says Dr. Hallam. “With any level of traumatic brain injury the best starting place is to talk with your family doctor.”
