Seniors For Living

Actress Natasha Richardson’s death in March 2009 from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) after a fall on a ski slope increased head injury awareness. According to the Center for Disease Control, approximately 1.4 million people sustain a traumatic brain injury annually.

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is caused by a blow to the head or other head injury that disrupts the function of the brain. Not all blows or jolts to the head cause a TBI. Severity may range from “mild” (a brief change in mental status or consciousness) to “severe” (an extended period of unconsciousness or amnesia). In the United States, falls are the leading cause of TBI.

Fall risk increases with age and is often caused by environmental hazards in the home. Other risk factors for falls are medication, other medical conditions, visual impairments, orthopedic problems, lack of exercise, and improper footwear.

Symptoms of TBI may be mild, moderate, or severe, depending on the extent of damage to the brain and some symptoms are evident immediately, while others may not surface until several days or weeks later.

According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke:

A person with a mild TBI may remain conscious or may experience a loss of consciousness for a few seconds or minutes. Other symptoms of mild TBI include headache, confusion, lightheadedness, dizziness, blurred vision or tired eyes, ringing in the ears, bad taste in the mouth, fatigue or lethargy, a change in sleep patterns, behavioral or mood changes, and trouble with memory, concentration, attention, or thinking.

A person with a moderate or severe TBI may show these same symptoms, but may also have a headache that gets worse or does not go away, repeated vomiting or nausea, convulsions or seizures, an inability to awaken from sleep, dilation of one or both pupils of the eyes, slurred speech, weakness or numbness in the extremities, loss of coordination, and increased confusion, restlessness, or agitation.

Signs and symptoms of head injury in seniors may be mistaken for signs of aging or even other medical conditions, and it’s important to know what to look for. The best cure for head injury is prevention, and older people especially should actively minimize risks of falling. Should a fall occur, immediate medical attention should be sought, including screening for TBI.

- Elizabeth Thielke