Traumatic Brain Injury Paper

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“A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a disruption in the normal functioning caused by a blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating injury” (Owens, 2015). People who suffer from a TBI may have trouble with speaking or understanding language. According to Kathleen bell MD from the “living with traumatic brain injury video”, They may have “problems with double vision difficulty with moving about the most common problems that people have and this stretches across mild to more severe brain injuries is problems with thinking and problems with managing behavioral emotions” (Living with a Traumatic Brain Injury, 2012.) There are three main types of brain injuries: contusion, axonal injury, and bleeding in the brain. A contusion to the brain is essentially …show more content…

The higher the number the more alert the patient is. For example, someone with a Glasgow coma score of three is likely to be in a deep coma whereas someone with a score of fifteen in the Glasgow coma score is fully alert. Traumatic brain injuries usually fall under these scores on the Glasgow coma scale, "Thirteen to fifteen Mild TBI, nine to twelve moderate TBI, and one to eight severe TBI" (Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury, 2013.) There are three states of consciousness: Minimally-conscious, semi-coma, and coma. These stages become more severe as they increase. A patient is in a minimally conscious state if there are “any small, consistently identifiable, and deliberate behaviors or action by the patient.” (Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury, 2013.) The patient may demonstrate that they are in a Semi-coma or vegetative state if the patients’ eyes are “open but not always aware of themselves or their surroundings” (Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury, 2013.) Lastly, the patient appears to be in a coma or deep state of unconsciousness when “they cannot be aroused, doesn’t respond to stimuli, and cannot make voluntary actions” (Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury, …show more content…

Regardless of how they obtain a TBI if they have a full cognitive maturity, they will show the deficits shortly after the injury because their brain is fully formed. Recovery from a traumatic brain injury varies from each individual case not only based on the type and severity of the brain injury but also the individual. If a College student suffers from a TBI they may have issues with physical, visual and cognitive-communication tasks. This may affect their ability to return to work or college. This can lead to symptoms evolving “over time consistent with anatomical changes in the neural substrates following the injury and comorbid conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbance (Department of Defense Deployment Health Clinical Center, n.d.)” (Traumatic Brain Injury in Adults, 2016.) It would be exceptionally frustrating for one to realize they aren’t able to perform the functions they once were able to. This could lead to an individual not finishing their degree, have a lesser feeling of self-worth leading to personal issues perhaps difficulty with developing relationships possibly leading to depression, and feasibly substance

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