Traumatic Brain Injury Statistics

* It is estimated that one million people are treated for TBI and released from hospital emergency rooms every year.
* Each year, 80,000 Americans experience the onset of long-term disability following TBI.
* More than 50,000 people die every year as a result of TBI.
* Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of brain injury. They account for 50% of all TBI.
* Falls are the second leading cause, and the leading cause of brain injury in the elderly.
* The risk of TBI is highest among adolescents, young adults and those older than 75.
* After one brain injury, the risk for a second injury is three times greater; after the second injury, the risk for a third injury is eight times greater.

The cost of traumatic brain injury in the United States is estimated to be $48.3 billion annually. Hospitalization accounts for $31.7 billion, and fatal brain injuries cost the nation $16.6 billion each year.

Traumatic Brain Injury Consequences

Cognitive consequences can include:

* Short term memory loss
* Long term memory loss
* Slowed ability to process information
* Trouble concentrating or paying attention for periods of time
* Difficulty keeping up with a conversation
* Other communication difficulties such as word finding problems
* Spatial disorientation
* Organizational problems and impaired judgment
* Unable to do more than one thing at a time

Physical consequences can include:

* Seizures of all types
* Muscle spasticity
* Double vision or low vision, even blindness
* Loss of smell or taste
* Speech impairments such as slow or slurred speech;
* Headaches or migraines
* Fatigue, increased need for sleep; balance problems
pain

Emotional consequences can include:

* A lack of initiating activities, or once started, difficulty in completing tasks without reminders
* Increased anxiety
* Depression and mood swings
* Denial of deficits
* Impulsive behavior
* More easily agitated
* Egocentric behaviors; difficulty seeing how behaviors can affect others