New Study Indicates That Traumatic Brain Injuries during Childhood Could Have Permanent Effects

A new study reveals that children who sustain traumatic brain injuries may experience severe psychological effects more a than decade later; effects such as anxiety, depression, and phobias.

While the link between concussions and brain trauma—including some behavioral issues—has surfaced, it was still previously thought that brain injuries mostly lead to short-term effects only.

Traumatic brain injuries typically occur when an outside force causes some kind of brain trauma, usually a loss of consciousness, amnesia, or damage to brain tissue which is visible in a scan. This particular study appears to have unearthed a very specific link indicating that not only may anxiety have several causes, one of which includes actual brain damage, but also that children with moderately severe brain injuries (as well as women in general) were at a greater risk for long-term psychological effects (as compared with men and children with milder brain injuries).

The Study

The study involved comparing young adults who had been treated for various degrees of traumatic brain injuries when they were children with similar young adults treated for childhood orthopedic injuries—such as broken arms or legs—but lacking in any history of brain injury. The ages of those involved in the study ranged from age seven to 11 years old, and for most, it had been at least 10-15 years since their injury had occurred.

In diagnostic interviews screening for psychological disorders (including generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks, phobias, and depression), those with any type of traumatic brain injury were found to be five times as likely to have an anxiety disorder and four times as likely to suffer from panic attacks, specific phobias, and depression, as compared with those who had no brain injuries. 

This Affects Rehabilitation Needs & Damages

The fact that, while many individuals go on to recover from brain injuries, others will instead go on to experience depression, anxiety, and/or even more serious ongoing psychological effects, brings all new meaning to the cause of these injuries and any potential rehabilitation and/or permanent damage that those suffering from them undergo. While more research is needed in order to fully understand the long-term psychological effects faced by those who experience these injuries during childhood, this study could very well affect victims of early childhood brain injuries, especially those who may present evidence of needing lifelong treatment as a result of the injury.

Contact Our Experienced Fort Lauderdale Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyers

At Friedland & Associates, our traumatic head and brain injury lawyers have years of experience litigating complex brain trauma cases, including those involving injured children whose lives are forever changed as a result of the injury. We work with nurses and doctors while reviewing medical reports in order to fully understand the injury and the negligence that caused it.

We are able to skillfully litigate these issues in order to help obtain compensation for you and your family and the many hurdles you will face as a result of whatever incident caused the injury.  If you or someone you love has sustained a traumatic head and/or brain injury, contact us today for a free consultation.

Resource:

washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/traumatic-brain-injury-may-make-children-more-prone-to-anxiety-and-phobias/2017/06/16/c00a112e-4bb2-11e7-a186-60c031eab644_story.html?utm_term=.b06bcaf8b96e