Emergency Medicine: Open Access
Open Access

A Brief Note on Traumatic Head Injury

Natal Malhotra^{* *}Correspondence: Natal Malhotra, Department of Psychiatry, Diamond Harbour Government Medical College and Hospital, Diamond Harbour, West Bengal, India, Email:

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Description

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is an unexpected sudden injury that causes damage to brain. It might happen when there is a blow, knock, or shock to the head. This is a closed head injury. A TBI can likewise happen when an object penetrates the skull. This is a penetrating injury. Gentle/mild traumatic brain injury might affect brain cells temporarily. More serious traumatic brain injury can bring about swelling, torn tissues, bleeding and other physical damage to the brain. These wounds can bring about long-term complications such as coma or death.

Symptoms of traumatic brain injury include headache, confusion, fatigue, dizziness, ringing in ears, insomnia, nausea, vomiting, and so on. They can be gentle/mild, moderate, or serious/severe. Temporary unconsciousness, blurred vision are a type of mild TBI. Seizures are an indication of moderate traumatic brain injury. More severe TBI can prompt serious physical and psychological symptoms such as coma and even death.

People of certain age groups are at higher risk of traumatic brain injury. Men are at high risk to get a TBI when compared with women and also they are more likely to get severe form of TBI. Adults and geriatrics of more than 65 ages are at the greatest risk for being hospitalized due to coma and eventually leading to death sometimes.

Diagnosis

Assuming if there is a head injury or other injury that might have caused a TBI, medical care should be taken as earlier as possible. To diagnose the condition, healthcare professional will go through some tests such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and cranial Computed Tomography (CT) scans, blood test, neurologic examinations, neuropsychological tests, etc.

MRI and cranial CT scans help in distinguishing parts that are enlarged, wounded or harmed and the utilization of treatment can help the brain in relearning after the damage. The Banyan Brain Trauma Indicator™ (BTI) looks for proteins in blood which indicates concussion or mild TBI. BTI apply a technique such as the Glasgow coma scale to determine the severeity of the TBI. This scale measures the ability to open eyes, speak, and move.

Treatment

The treatment for TBI depends on many factors, including the size, severity, type and location of the brain injury. For gentle TBI, the principle treatment is rest. Assuming that if the person is suffering from headache, over the counter pain killers for it can be taken. It is essential to adhere to healthcare professional guidelines for complete rest and a gradual return to normal activities.

For moderate to serious TBI, the main thing healthcare professionals will do is to stabilize the person to prevent further injury. They will manage the blood pressure i.e. check the pressure inside the skull of the person, and ensure that there is sufficient blood and oxygen supply to brain. Once the person is stable, the treatment might include: Surgery, Rehabilitation treatments, Medicines, and so on. Certain individuals with TBI might have extremely permanent disabilities. A TBI can likewise endanger the person for other medical conditions such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Treating these issues can improve quality of life.